Whispers
by XxAngelWithWingsxX
Summary: Jace and Clary have known each other for years but their relationship has always differed: for Jace, Clary was just the girl he grew up with and could occasionally have fun with. For Clary, Jace was the guy she never knew how she felt about, but she knew that he was something more. So she let the years pass quietly at his side, living off of the whispers of memories. AU/All human.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys!**

**I'm back with a new story. Pick Your Poison will be put on a hold for a teensy bit because I can't get this story out of my head.**

**As pyp, this story will be edited by TMI. If you get the chance please thank her for her work, she really does an amazing job.**

**But before we move on, I'd just like to say this story is going to be very special to me, largely because it's heavily based off of my own life. The memories that will be littered throughout the story will almost always be real memories of mine, altered to fit Jace and Clary better.**

**Also, it's the first story I'm writing that doesn't really have an action genre. So if you absolutely need that dose of kick ass fighting, this story may not be your cup of tea.**

**All human. Slightly OOC. Probably going to be fluffy.**

**But it's a story about Jace and Clary, nothing more, nothing less.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

I squinted against the bright sunlight.

I glanced back at my mother, who had her easel situated underneath a tree and was painting with heavy concentration apparent on her face. I considered dashing over to have a look at her art, but a flash of color in a nearby bush quickly distracted me. I ran quickly over to where I had spotted the bright flutter.

Looking back now, it was probably just a butterfly or a piece of colorful paper, but my six-year-old overactive imagination turned it into a magical creature sighting. Gleaming with joy, I whirled around and yelled to my mother, "Mom, I saw a fairy!"

Broken out of her painting daze, she chuckled and let out a sigh. "Fairies don't exist, Clary," was her gentle but firm response. She had never fed into my love for the supernatural, even going as far as to reject the existence of any sort of magic, yet it never ceased my fascination. Undiscouraged, I went back to playing mindlessly in the grass. My imagination created hundreds of magical opportunities, not bending in the slightest to the force of my mother's denial.

That day in Central Park is one of the few memories I have of that time period. The edges of the memory are dull and the rest of details are long lost, but I can remember one thing very clearly.

Jace.

I was kneeling in the grass, pawing around for what I was sure was a pixie, when I felt a hard tug at my ponytail. With a yelp of pain, I bolted up as quickly as my 6 year old self could to face my attacker.

A blonde boy who looked around my age was standing behind me, smirking, with his hands crossed over his chest. My little hands balled into fists at the sight of his arrogant smile and I had to resist the urge to hit him. "What's wrong with the color of your hair?" he asked impudently, clearly feeling no shame about yanking the ponytail in question mere seconds before. The blonde boy tilted his head as he stared at my hair. "It looks like rust."

_Mom says hitting people is mean_, I reminded myself, my mother's voice in my head being the only thing stopping me from turning to violence. Instead, I resorted to insult. "Oh yeah, well what's wrong with your…"

And I found nothing. From the tips of his golden hair to the confident golden eyes down to his well-dressed body, he was perfect. Even my six year old self could see that.

I can still feel the blush that had flared on my cheeks that day when I ran away from that awkward situation back towards my mother. I couldn't confide in her yet though, because she had ceased painting and was having a conversation with an unknown lady. Upon seeing my return, my mother got up from her seat at the easel and called me closer.

"Clary, I'd like you to meet Mrs. Lightwood." She put a hand on my shoulder and gestured to the lady, who was dressed all in black. "Mrs. Lightwood is a very important customer of mine."

The lady smiled at me. I stared back, wondering where on earth she had sprung from. "Your mother has great talent Clary. And I see you've already met Jace?"

_Jace?_

I turned around to see the blonde haired boy standing a few feet away. When our eyes met, he waved cheekily at me. "Rusty!" he greeted me gleefully. I glared back.

That's how my friendship with Jace Lightwood began. I'm still not sure how to feel about that day.

"What in the world are you staring at Clary?" a voice broke out through my daydreaming. As Central Park disappeared along with the seven-year-old Jace, the decade older Jace came into focus. The same golden eyes from the memory were staring straight at me. He was leaning down with his arm propped up on my desk, his casual breath rustling the hair at the top of my head.

My heart stopped; he was much too close.

"Nothing Jace," I mumbled and scrambled to get up and away from his piercing gaze, nearly smashing my head into his in the process.

"Really? Because from the looks of it, I'd say you were having a rather vivid dream about your trulys," he teased. "You've really got to keep your imagination in check, Clary." He winked at me and broke into a huge smile. I blushed furiously; partly because his wink had sent my heart into strange flutters and partly because he was right on the mark.

With a delayed recovery from my momentary lapse of sanity, I spat back at him, "If I had been dreaming about you, Jace, I'm sure it would have been a nightmare." I glared at him, much in the same way as I had in that day in the park ten years ago.

"Whatever you say, Cherrydrop." He smirked at me and left, swinging his bag over his shoulder just as the bell ending homeroom rang. I scowled at the use of his favorite nickname for me and watched his back as he sped up to meet some of his other friends. I suppressed a sigh.

Why did he have to look cool around the clock?

It was safe to say that we were on much better terms now than at our fateful meeting in Central Park. His being the adoptive son of my mother's biggest fans meant we had begun to see each other much more than I had originally liked…

…but the sucker grew on me.

I gritted my teeth as I made my way toward my locker, thoughts of Jace swirling through my head. It was strange to think that someone I had hated with all my heart in the beginning could have become some sort of a friend to me in a few months' time. Somehow, Jace had managed to do it.

However, that didn't stop him from being an asshat whenever he could. The sensible part of me told me I could break off our friendship whenever I wanted to, but there was this other part of me that screamed bloody murder at the thought of losing Jace.

Once I had all my books out and on the floor, I slammed the locker shut and watched as it vibrated at its hinges. I wasn't entirely sure where my sudden anger was springing from, but I knew it had something to do with Jace.

"What wrong did that locker ever do to you, Clary?"

Isabelle was striding towards me from the other end of the hallway, an amused expression lighting her face. The clicks her heeled boots made came to a stop and she leaned against the locker next to mine. I opened my mouth to make a sarcastic retort about the locker, but thought better of it. Given this random anger, I'd probably sound a lot harsher than intended. Isabelle's eyes narrowed, most likely sensing that I was forcibly making myself behave.

"Let me guess, Jace managed to rub you the wrong way this early in the morning?" She snickered, "In the ten years I've known you, I don't think I haven't seen you guys fight. You two are like an old married couple I swear."

"Not helping, Iz." I grabbed my books off the floor and hurried away from Isabelle and her remarks. Her snickers and the incessant clicking of her boots followed me through the hallway toward the first period class we shared.

If anyone understood my frustration with Jace, it was Isabelle, Jace's adopted sister and my best friend. She had the pleasure of dealing with Jace's ridiculousness at home, so we were mostly on the same boat. But whether she knew it or not, Jace doted on Isabelle; the full brunt of his asshattedness usually fell onto me.

Oh, the joy.

* * *

The cafeteria was alive with sound as we sat at our usual table. I looked down at the glop in my plate that had been labeled as meatloaf and shuddered. School food was not to be trusted.

"Look everybody, our shining prince is back!" Isabelle called cheerfully. I glanced up from my lunch to see Jace sauntering towards us. He pulled out a chair and sat down, one foot propped against the edge of the table.

"Miss me much?" Jace asked with a lopsided smile.

Simon scoffed to my right. I looked towards one of my oldest friends with affection amd slight disapproval; I could see the annoyance on his face at Jace's carefree and overall arrogant attitude. To give him credit, he did a fairly good job of putting up with Jace for my sake.

Isabelle glanced between Jace and Simon nervously, sensing the usual tension between the boys. "Anyway!" she chirped, trying to sweep away their less than friendliness, "It's Friday today. Want to do something tonight?"

"If Golden Boy is going to be there, then no thanks." Simon muttered, shooting a glare at Jace.

Jace narrowed his eyes at Simon in response, but quickly returned to his usual smirk. "Don't worry about that rat boy," he replied smoothly, "I already have plans with Aline tonight. Can't make it."

As if on cue, Aline's high pitched voice called across the cafeteria. The unwelcome sound was soon followed by the pattering of heels that meant she was coming this way. The sight of Jace's plastic girlfriend made me want to barf.

"Jace there you are!" Aline slowed down as she got closer and slinked an arm around Jace's shoulders. Her jet black hair dangled to cover their faces as she leaned down to kiss Jace full on the mouth. I snorted, raising my eyebrows at Isabelle and trying to hide my disgust.

At the sound of my discomfort, Aline gave me a victorious smile and sat down on the chair next to Jace. "Don't forget we have dinner plans tonight, Jacey," she purred. "My father will be very upset if you don't show up again." She pouted at him and he chuckled.

"I won't, don't worry," Jace assured her.

Giving him a bright smile, she hopped out of the chair and pulled on Jace's arm to lead him to her usual table "C'mon, I wanna go talk to Shelly," she whined. With a quick wave at me and Isabelle and a semi-friendly glare at Simon, Jace let himself be pulled across the room with her.

A flicker of jealousy flashed through me, making me pause for a second in shock as I identified the emotion. What in the world was I thinking? In the year Jace had been dating Aline, it was true that I never really liked her. But lately, seeing them together made me want to break something.

Before I could get my hands on something to destroy, Isabelle's brother Alec came crashing down into the chair Jace had occupied seconds before.

"You just missed our golden boy's presence." Simon said sourly.

Alec ran a hand over his face. "I get enough of that at home," he dismissed. "Speaking of home, aren't you guys doing something tonight at our house? It's Friday again."

Isabelle nodded eagerly. "I think Simon and Clary are coming over to watch a movie. Are you staying with us?" Isabelle leaned closer to Alec, eyes bright with mischief. "Are you going to bring Magnus?"

"Magnus?" I asked. I hadn't heard of the name before. "Who's he?" I turned to look at Alec with curiosity.

"Don't listen to her Clary. She's talking nonsense." But Alec's pink cheekbones told me there was something more there.

Isabelle gave me the _I'll tell you later _look, and quickly dropped the subject. I giggled at Alec's uncomfortable expression and turned to Simon. "You're coming though right? Or will you be too busy playing Dungeons and Dragons?" I teased. Simon had always tagged along with me and Iz from when we were kids. Before I had met Isabelle and Jace, Simon had been my closest friend and I still owed him a lot for it.

"Of course I'm coming." He gave me a small smile, finally dropping the sour glare he always wore around Jace. I smiled back.

Isabelle cleared her throat, looking between me and Simon with a blank expression. "Now that that's settled then, I'll see you guys tonight?"

We nodded at her as she picked up her trash and walked over to throw it away. The stiffness in her back told me that she was annoyed at something, but I couldn't exactly figure out what. You never knew with Isabelle, anyway.

Unconsciously, the eyes drifted to where I knew Jace would be sitting, surrounded by Aline's friends. He was picking at his sandwich, not really listening to what was going on around him. I knew that he didn't really like her friends; why didn't he just sit with us? I watched as Aline turned to Jace laughing, retelling to him something her friend had said. He automatically smiled politely in response. The smile didn't reach his eyes, but Aline was appeased and she turned back towards her friends while Jace turned back to not paying attention.

Jace's hands, which had been playing with his sandwich, suddenly froze and he looked up, directly at me. When he saw that I had been staring at him, he gave me his trademark smirk and waved.

I felt my face heat up. I stuck my tongue out at him and turned back to my own table, before he could catch sight of my blush. What in the world was I blushing for though? I wasn't staring at some stranger, I was staring at Jace, someone I had been friends with for ten years.

Simon pulled me out of my thoughts. "Come on, we're going to be late for class." I looked up at him and saw that his eyes were tight, the smile he had given me before completely vanished. I got up and followed him carefully, unsure of what to say.

What was wrong with everyone today?

* * *

**And there we have it, the first chapter! Holy moly, it's hard to write that first chapter. But at least it's out of the way :D**

**Review, and tell me what you think! What do you expect, do you like that it's based off of my own experiences.**

**But review!**

**Yours,**

**~A.W.W**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys! Thanks so much for reading and liking it :D**

**This chapter is un beta'd again, I'll try to get the beta'd version up as soon as possible. **

**Other than that, enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 2

"Mom, I'm home!" I called as the door slammed shut behind me. I slipped my shoes off at the entryway (my mom was crazy about these sorts of things) and went investigating when I heard no reply back.

_Well there's one place she's likely to be_, I thought, and made my way to the small backroom behind the living room. Light music seeped through the cracks in the door and I knew that she was inside painting. She had turned the room into her personal studio when we had first moved in, and I had learned throughout the years that it was one place I should be invited to before entering. It was Jocelyn Fray's sanctuary.

_Best not to disturb her then,_ thought and walked back towards the kitchen, setting my backpack on the table and opening the pantry to grab something to eat.

Sometime in the middle of my nutella sandwich, my mom ventured out of her sanctuary and called out my name.

"Clary? Are you home?"

"Yeah mom. In the kitchen." I chewed as she entered into the kitchen and gave me a smile. I smiled back and studied her paint crusted hands and overalls. The strong smell of turpentine hung in the air; it seemed like she'd been painting for hours.

"Excited about a new project?" I asked; it had been a while since she'd gotten so into a painting.

She nodded. "It's for the Lightwoods actually. They asked me to paint something for one of Maryse's cousins. I think they're having a wedding?"

"Cool," I responded. I tried my best to ignore the spark that had gone through my body at the sound of Lightwood. Something really was off with me today.

"Oh Clary honey, you know it's your birthday soon right?" my mom suddenly said.

I shrugged. My birthday wasn't that interesting of a day, and I was pretty sure I'd be spending it with Izzy and Simon as usual. Jace would have been there, but its seemed that Aline was taking up more and more of his time.

"Yeah mom, but you don't have to do anything for me. I'm probably going to go out with Iz and Simon anyways."

I could feel my mom's eyes on me as I continued to eat my sandwich, and when I had enough of her glare I looked up and asked, "What?"

She paused. "How's Jace been doing lately? I haven't heard a lot about him from you."

I froze; there was that name again. Before she could catch wind of my discomfort, I shrugged again.

"I don't know mom, he's been busy with his girlfriend. We still talk and stuff in school."

She didn't seem convinced. "I don't know Clary, you two used to be such good friends. I haven't even seen his face in months."

I felt irritated. Why was everyone so concerned about me and Jace? "Nothing's wrong mom."

"Well alright." I let out a sigh as she dropped the subject. "Do you want anything else to eat? That doesn't seem like much." She eyed the small piece of my nutella sandwich that was left.

"Want me to make you some pie? Your father used to -," And she froze.

I eyed her curiously. She never mentioned anything about my father, no matter how much I had badgered her to in the past. After that, I had just stopped asking.

"What about dad?" I asked, trying to nudge her on. But she pursed her lips and said nothing more.

I rolled my eyes at her. Shouldn't she give me more than just a photo to remember him by? My mother always told me he had died before I was born, and had framed a photo in his memory. Any other questions about the subject were explicitly prohibited.

"Whatever mom. I'm hanging out with Izzy and Simon tonight. I'll probably be back really late." I knew she wouldn't mind anyways, but it was better to let her know.

"It's Friday right? Have fun then." She started walking away from the kitchen, but paused and looked back at me. "If you see Maryse, tell her the painting is coming along well."

I nodded and she left the room to return to her painting.

Maryse had always welcomed me to their home, but something about her made her seem closed off, and a tad scary. She was also the only woman in the world that could control Jace and demand respect from him.

Yeah, she was pretty amazing.

* * *

"Simon, we've already seen that movie like five times. Pick something else for once!" Isabelle threw the dvd case back at Simon.

"Oh come on. Where else are you going to get your dose of sexy elf women? You want to watch it, don't you Clary?" He looked at me hopefully.

"I think I've had enough of elf women, Simon." He frowned, and I couldn't help but giggle.

Isabelle gave an indignant huff. "And what do you want to watch, Princess Alec?"

Alec glared at her for a second, but waved off the question. "You know I don't really care."

The same mischievous glint Isabelle had earlier in the day returned to her eyes. "I thought you were bringing Magnus though. You'd think you'd introduce him to us first."

I had to stifle my laughter at Alec's suddenly red face. _Poor guy,_ I thought and watched as he threw his hands up in the air and left, flabbergasted.

Isabelle and I broke into laughter for a good few minutes until Simon broke in. "Wait, I don't get it, who is Magnus?"

Isabelle eyed him with annoyance. She turned to me and said, "You'd think guys would understand quicker, but this idiot is as lost as ever."

I nodded. Simon was pretty slow with these things, though.

Once we settled on a movie, Isabelle popped it in and we got comfortable on her couch. Alec reappeared a few minutes later and sat down on the couch with a huff. He was a year older, but Isabelle still managed to find a way to push his buttons. I had to suppress another giggle as Simon eyed Alec with confusion.

As opening credits started, Isabelle suddenly spoke up, "Wait, your birthday is in a week Clary! Want to head out to Pandemonium?"

I winced. As much as I liked the blaring lights and smell of sweat, I preferred to spend my birthday quietly.

"Thanks, but no thanks Iz. How about you guys come over and we have a little party at my house instead?"

Isabelle pouted. "We do that every year, Clary. You're turning 17! We should do something special instead."

I sighed. "But it would make me really happy Isabelle, if I could just hang out with you guys."

Isabelle gave up, knowing I wouldn't budge about this. "Fine Clary, if you want to continue to be boring your entire life then go ahead and do it."

"I'll come too, Clary," Alec said, "Is Jace coming?"

Isabelle frowned. "You know what he's like now, Alec. He's probably going to be off with Aline somewhere." I gave her a small smile when she glanced over at me.

"It's fine, he'd probably spend all night insulting me anyways." The sad part is this was probably true; the amount I saw him lately was barely enough for him to squeeze in a snide remark.

But it still hurt a little. Jace hadn't missed a birthday since we had met 10 years ago, and to think he wasn't going to be there now just felt wrong.

I smiled. He had always been the life of the party, ever since that first birthday when I turned 8. My mother took me and my friends out to a bowling alley downtown despite my blatant refusal. But I still was excited to be celebrating with my friends.

Jace tugged on my hair. It had become a habit of his to tug on my red ponytails whenever he saw me, as a form of greeting. I snarled, but it quickly turned into a smile when I saw the one on his face.

"I turned 8 months ago, you suck Clary." Jace's smile widened at the prospect of being older than me. "But I have something special for you, Clary."

I don't know what my eight year old self expected, but before I could comment, Jace had swooped down and pecked my cheek.

I was frozen in shock. Before I could recover, Jace gave another huge smile. "Be lucky you got kissed by me." He had been a player from the start.

Fingers snapped in front of my face.

"Clary? You missed the first 10 minutes of the movie didn't you. You need to stop getting lost in your head." Simon raised an eyebrow at me. "I have to call your name three or four times before you get back down to Earth."

I smiled sheepishly. I knew I did that. "I probably didn't miss much anyways, we've seen Mean Girls a million times."

Simon rolled his eyes. "It's okay when it's a chick flick to watch it again and again, but when it comes to foxy elf women…"

Isabelle threw a pillow at Simon.

"Can you shut up? I'm trying to watch a movie here."

Silence settled again as the attention was diverted to the movie. I was distracted though; not even Mean Girls could get me to stop thinking about the fact that Jace was going to miss my birthday this year.

As the movie neared its end, we heard the door open and slam close.

"I'm home!" Jace's voice called. When he heard the tv on in the living room, he wandered in to check out what was going on. He saw us sitting sprawled on the couch and raised an eyebrow. Alec waved at him but refused to turn away from the tv, immersed in Mean Girls.

"You guys are still here?"

"We had a little trouble deciding what movie to watch, so we started a bit late." Isabelle responded, with a silent glare at Simon. With a quick glance at me, she continued "How did the dinner with Aline's parents go?"

Jace shrugged. "The usual. Uptight rich parents, what do you expect?"

There's that flare of anger again. I calmed it down a little so I could ask, "Jace, are you going to make it on my birthday next Friday?"

My heart thudded as I waited for his response. But I knew what he would say before he opened his mouth.

Jace frowned, but managed a sad smile. "Sorry Cherrydrop, I can't. Aline keeps asking me to meet up with some people and she picked Friday to do it." Jace couldn't meet my eyes and I felt the strange urge to throw something.

"It's fine, we can have fun by ourselves, right guys?" I cheerfully said and turned to Isabelle, Alec and Simon. They all smiled at me, but didn't say anything.

Jace scoffed. "Keep telling yourself that Clary. It's not a party without me and you know it." With a wink, he left the room and hopped up the stairs.

And the only thing I could think of was how right he was.

* * *

**Ugh, Clary.**

**I wrote the thing and I still want to knock some sense into her.**

**Thanks for reading guys~**

**Review!**

**Yours,**

**~A.W.W**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guys!**

**I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, I hope you guys like it just as much :D**

**Also thank you so much for all those reviews! They made my day and it's nice to be appreciated for writing and sharing.**

**Once again, a big thanks to TMI for being my amazing beta! I love you my nit pick queen :3**

**On to the chapter!**

**Also, I've been forgetting to add this:**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything aside from plot. Everything else belongs to Cassandra Clare.**

* * *

Simon rattled a party favor in my face. "Clary you don't look like you're having any fun! Come on it's your birthday!"

I scowled. I did not enjoy having colorful things pushed in front of my face at any time, regardless of whether or not it was my birthday.

Isabelle, Alec and Simon had gathered at my house like they did every year to celebrate my birthday, arms loaded with gifts and party decorations. I grimaced at the now-tackily decorated living room where they sat throwing popcorn at each other. You'd think they'd take into consideration my wish for a quiet birthday, but no. A party filled with loud music and food fights was a must.

"Can you kids try not to make too much of a mess?" My mom walked in gingerly, holding a frosted cake in her hands. "You know you're going to have to clean it up later anyways."

A few grumbles ran through the room at the prospect of cleaning up all the popcorn that littered the floor, but they perked up automatically when they caught sight of the cake. My friends had a tendency to be cheered up from anything by food, especially dessert.

Isabelle hopped up and dragged me to the cake, jumping eagerly with excitement. When I looked down at the cake, I was glad to see it was my mom's usual homemade chocolate cake. As she set the 16 candles into the cake one by one, I couldn't help but feel that twinge of regret.

Everything was the same; the cake my mom made every year, the tacky decorations, the obnoxious friends making unnecessary ruckus. But Jace was missing. Those snide comments that I would pretend to be annoyed at, that smirk that still lights up my day.

I was officially going off the deep end. Was I just thinking that I enjoyed his annoying comments?

And yet…

I knew somewhere deep down that those irritating comments and smirks had become a part of me. Jace had become a part of me. That was, before he was snatched away by Aline.

I shook my head to clear it of any more ridiculous thoughts. Jace had a life of his own, who was I to care how he used his time?

I looked up to see Isabelle staring at me sadly. The weight of her stare made me uncomfortable, and I quickly turned away from it.

By now, all seventeen candles had been put into place and successfully lit. The chorus of happy birthday began around me, and I gave a small smile. I had friends and family who cared about me right here. There was no reason to be thinking about Jace, who obviously pegged Aline to be more important than the girl with whom he'd had a decade of friendship. As the final notes of the birthday song passed through everybody's lips, I let my small smile grow wider.

"Alright Clary, go ahead and blow them out," my mom said, grinning.

I sucked in a huge breath and closed my eyes before letting it out in a big gush. Most of the candle flames blew out right away, but I repeated the process for the few stubborn ones that remained. I nearly thought I had forgotten to make a wish, but I knew what I wanted most.

It hurt to think that wish wouldn't be granted.

"What'd you wish for?" Isabelle asked, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively.

Before I could stammer out an evasive response, loud knocks sounded at the door.

Everyone paused. My mom hurried over to the door, muttering, "Who could that be?"

A spark of hope ignited in my chest but I quickly smothered it; Jace couldn't possibly have made it today. I turned back to the cake and the still-smoking candles, an empty feeling settling in my stomach.

"Clary, look who's here!" My mom's voice rang through the living room. I turned towards her, completely devoid of any expectation. There was only one person that I wanted to see, and he had already told me that he wasn't going to come.

Yet there he was, smirk and all, standing in my doorway.

"How's it going, Cherrydrop?" he grinned even wider and looked around, his eyes settling on the cake. "Aww, I missed all the wonderful singing? My heart aches."

I stood frozen, my mouth agape. "How..?" I managed to get out, still dumbfounded that Jace was standing ten feet away from me instead of off gallivanting with Aline. I looked at the others to see that Alec and Isabelle were both grinning from ear to ear, yet Simon looked strangely annoyed. My mind wasn't working fast enough to process this at the time though, my attention caught onto Jace.

"I couldn't miss your birthday, could I Clary? The one day I can torment you with no remorse?" He grinned cheekily, but made no move to step inside.

Jace looked around awkwardly for a few seconds, but cleared his throat and turned to face my mom. "I'm sorry that I'm stealing the birthday girl, but do you mind if I take Clary out to dinner? It's been a while since I've had time to take her out."

At that point, I had had enough. I broke out of my shock and ran over to where Jace standing, hugging him furiously. I realized I hadn't touched him in ages; he seemed bigger in my arms, sturdier. The hands that went up to hug me back were warm and strong. I almost didn't know this Jace, but was just as glad to see him.

"It's fine if I leave, right mom?" I asked when I broke away. She had a strange look on her face, but nodded with a smile. "Sorry to bail from my own party," I apologized, grinning as I grabbed my coat.

Simon stood up. "Why don't you guys just stay here?" he suggested, his tone somewhat frosty. "I think we'd all like to celebrate Clary's birthday." He narrowed his eyes at Jace, who simply smiled back.

"You guys have had your time," Jace replied smoothly. "And besides, I haven't seen Clary in ages. I have a right to see my friend too."

Simon pursed his lips, but said nothing more. I threw a smile at him which he ignored, turning back towards my cake. I watched as he absentmindedly picked off a strawberry and ate it, wondering what was going through his mind,

Jace pulled on my arm and I turned to look up at him. "Let's go short stuff, it's getting late," he announced cheerfully. Jace gave me a smile and his hand lowered into mine as we walked out the door and towards his car.

My heart was thrown into a frenzy; here was the Jace I had known for ten years. I didn't even realize how much I missed him.

* * *

"Taki's?" I asked. A nostalgic smile spread across my face when I looked at the beaten down brick building; whenever Jace and I went out, we had always gone to Taki's.

"For old time's sake. I'm in the mood for some breakfast for dinner, and I'm pretty sure you are too." Jace nodded to the doorman who graciously opened the door into the dimly lit restaurant. Jace picked a booth a little ways away from the other guests and we sat facing each other.

Once seated, we both ordered some coconut pancakes and waited in an almost awkward silence. I looked towards Jace and realized his face had changed as well; the lines in his face were harder, his eyes brighter and his skin tanner. But the most astonishing difference was that he looked tired.

"Is something wrong Jace? You don't look so well..." My gaze grew anxious as I tried to figure out what exactly had happened to his usually vibrant expression.

Jace chuckled. "Having a girlfriend like Aline is an almost around the clock job. But forget about me, what about you? What have you been up to Clary? I haven't had time alone with you since…" His sentence dropped off.

"Since you started dating Aline," I finished for him.

Jace gave me another sad smile. "I'm sorry for that, I really am. I miss my favorite little redhead you know." He leaned over the table and gave my hair an affectionate rub. I swatted him away, but not without a smile.

"I miss you too Jace. Smart ass remarks and all." And I meant every word.

He responded with a smile that was so bright it blinded me. But it shut off in a second, replaced with a neutral face as he abruptly stared me down. "Are you and rat boy dating or something?"

The question caught me off guard. Why would he think that? "Not at all, why?" I replied slowly. "You know Simon's like a brother to me."

Jace shrugged. "He seemed pretty upset when I swooped in and stole you away."

I scoffed. "You would be too if some arrogant jerk crashed a party he said he wouldn't be at and stole the guest of honor from everyone."

"Don't act like you didn't like it." Jace smirked. I glowered at him but turned away when I felt a blush spread across my face. Maybe I liked it _too _much.

Thankfully, the pancakes arrived right then and were set in front of each of us. My stomach growled at the aroma they were giving off and I eagerly drowned them in syrup.

I was barely through half of my plate when I looked over and saw that Jace was done. Without thinking, I slid my plate over to the middle of the table and he dug in. I was astonished at the normalcy of this; it was just like old times. I set the fork down and watched him, content with seeing him act more like himself, more like my Jace instead of Aline's Jace.

There came those thoughts again. It was starting to get ridiculous how primitive I was being; Jace didn't belong to me and nor would he ever.

Jace froze mid bite, apparently suddenly realizing it was my food he was demolishing. "Are you done, Clary?"

I nodded at him and he eagerly finished off the rest of the plate. Even if he wasn't mine, it didn't change the fact that I missed him. I had every right to miss him, didn't I? Especially since he had been my friend way before he was Aline's boyfriend.

He sat back, full and content. I laughed when he called the waitress to order dessert.

"There's no end to that stomach of yours, is there?" I teased.

"It takes a lot of effort to be this amazing, Cherrydrop," Jace informed me seriously. He winked and picked up the dessert menu when the waitress came over.

When she had our orders and walked away, Jace suddenly perked up. "Clary, I almost forgot. I brought you something." Curiosity got the better of me as I watched him pull out a little box from the pocket of his jacket. He placed it gingerly on the table next to our empty plate and gestured for me to take him.

I eyed him with suspicion and picked up the box. It was wrapped in a bow but it was clear that it was a little jewelry box. I untied the bow and pushed it open.

Nestled in soft white fabric was a silver necklace, a little red pendant hanging from the fine chain. On closer inspection, I realized the pendant was actually two round cherries hanging off of green stems. The cherries sparkled and the gems in them gleamed.

"How do you like it, Cherrydrop?" Jace smiled at me, his chipped tooth gleaming even in the dim lights of Taki's.

I laughed. "It's very fitting Jace, and very pretty." I was touched. No matter how much I hated the nickname he gave me, seeing a necklace that held such meaning made me glow with happiness.

"Here, get up for a second. I'll put it on you." Jace stood up next to the table and waited patiently for me to get up. I almost couldn't, I was so amazed at seeing Jace like this. Since when was he a gentleman? I slid out of the booth and handed him the necklace before turning around and facing the other way.

I felt his warm hand brush my red curls away from my neck and a shiver went down my spine, which I tried my hardest to ignore. The cool metal of the necklace slithered into place around my throat as the clasp shut in his hands.

Once he had let go of the necklace, he placed both hands on my shoulders and spun me around. "Let me take a look," he said and observed the necklace. With a satisfied smile, he let go of me completely. "I don't have bad taste, if I do say so myself," he remarked smugly.

I rolled my eyes at him. "Whatever you say Jace." I couldn't help but agree, however. The necklace was more than perfect.

And even though I usually didn't care for the annual event, this birthday was more than perfect.

* * *

**What did you think :D**

**I love this Clary and Jace so much~ **

**Or maybe because it's based off of me. Hehe. **

**Whatever the reason, I'm enjoying writing this.**

**Thanks for reading and leave a review!**

**Yours,**

**~A.W.W**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys! I'll leave the A/N at the bottom because there's a bit of info there but for now, thank you so much for all those reviews! I'm glad to know that you guys are enjoying the story :D**

**On to the chapter! You may like this one hehe.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. **

* * *

Chapter 4

The music was almost audible from the outside of the club, and I sighed when I leaned over around the line and saw that we were nowhere near the front door. It seemed the entire city wanted to go to Pandemonium tonight.

"Isabelle, why, why whyyy?" I whined. Sure I had ditched them the other night for Jace, but did that mean I had to be subjected to _this? _

"Clary, hush. You love this place just admit it. And besides, you _did _run out on us yesterday." Isabelle narrowed her eyes at me but smirked. "I'm assuming you had fun, yes?"

My face burned. I grumbled at Isabelle and tried to ignore the fact that I _had_ had a lot of fun. Too much fun.

Simon snorted. "Who wouldn't have bucket loads of fun with the Golden Boy? I'm practically itching to see him again."

I stifled my giggles at Simon's obvious annoyance. I was still giggling when Simon glanced over at me and gave me an appraising look. "At least you look nice today. I guess there's that."

Isabelle smacked him with her purse. "Of course she looks nice, that was my birthday present for her."

I looked down at myself as Simon rubbed his shoulder and complained about Isabelle constantly hitting him. I guess I did look nice; Isabelle had managed to find a dress in a deep green that complimented my fiery hair perfectly. The dress wrapped around my short body and ended a good ways above my knees and made it seem like I actually had curves to speak of.

The necklace Jace had given me the night before hung on my neck, right above the neckline of the dress. Isabelle had thrown a fit when I had put it on, but I had managed to convince her to let me wear it, regardless of whether or not it matched.

By the time their bickering had ended, we had reached the front of the line and the bouncer unhooked the velvet rope to let us inside.

My senses were immediately overwhelmed: the lights that danced across the otherwise dark room momentarily blinded me, the sound of the music now at its full volume made it impossible to hear anything else and the smell of sweaty bodies from the dance floor had spread throughout the entire space.

It was hell.

A hand grabbed my wrist and I yelped before I realized it was Isabelle dragging me towards the bar area. "A few sodas before we head out to the dance floor should be good, right" I had to strain to hear her words but obediently followed.

By the time we were seated at a few empty stools and had cokes in our hands, I turned around to face the swirling crowd of dancers. I watched absentmindedly as people moved somewhat along with the music, and wondered what Jace might be doing right now.

And then I wondered what I was doing thinking about Jace.

"I didn't expect to see you guys here tonight." With an internal groan as I recognized the high pitched voice, I turned to the side to see Aline approaching us. Simon gagged at my side; I almost did the same when I saw how close to nothing she was wearing, as usual.

Isabelle didn't even try to hide her scowl. "Where's Jacey at? Don't you drag him along with you everywhere you go?"

Aline plastered on an overly bright smile. "He's over there, waiting for me." She pointed to somewhere along the other wall and I tried to calm my heartbeat when I saw the familiar flash of golden hair.

Isabelle set down her glass with a little more force than necessary. I was never sure why, but she _really_ did not like Aline.

"I'm going out to the dance floor. You coming, Clary?" She glanced at me expectantly.

I raised my still filled glass at her. "Once I'm done with this, I promise to come down."

Simon put his glass down. "I for one, and completely open to the idea of dancing." But I knew that all he really wanted was to get away from Aline.

Isabelle gave me a stiff not and disappeared into the crowd with Simon. Aline chuckled and leaned against the bar, studying me head to toe.

Her eyes caught onto my necklace. I unconsciously covered my hand over it when I saw the smirk on her face.

"Nice necklace, but don't you think you're a little old for it?"

I silently counted to ten before I answered her. "Thanks, but it was a very special gift."

I instantly regretted the next few words out of my mouth, but felt a strong sense of satisfaction at the same time. "It was from Jace," I added.

Her face contorted in rage for a few moments before a blank expression settled over it.

"Oh really? Well, it was nice talking to you Clary. I'll see you around." With that, she hurried away from the bar and disappeared along with Isabelle.

I couldn't help feeling giddy when I had said, straight to her face that the necklace had been from Jace. A part of me knew it was wrong to bait her, but boy did I feel good.

My eyes wandered back over to where she had said Jace was. Aline had reached him again and I laughed as she unsuccessfully tried to get him out to the dance floor.

I felt my heart sink as he eventually agreed and let her lead him into the mass of bodies. Part of me wanted to turn away when I saw how close Aline was getting to Jace but my eyes were transfixed on their dancing bodies.

She turned around so that Jace could wind his arms around her waist, his front pressed against her back and she looked towards the bar until she found me.

Even from where I was sitting, I could see the smirk that she shot in my direction. I froze but then quickly got up to locate where Isabelle and Simon were. I needed to get out of here, now.

The image of Aline glued to Jace was plastered in my mind as I searched through the dance floor. I found Simon dancing in his usual manner, which consisted of jumping up and down in one spot. Isabelle was nearby, surrounded by a group of adoring males.

I grabbed their arms and they followed when they saw the look on my face.

"What's wrong, Clary?" Isabelle looked at me worriedly.

I shook my head at her. I didn't know exactly what had happened, but I just wanted to go home.

Simon and Isabelle gave each other a look, and left the club with me wordlessly.

* * *

My fingers were twirling the cherries on the necklace, admiring the glints of sunlight that were reflected off the surface. It was a beautiful necklace; but what made it even more outstanding was that Jace had given it to me.

The events of last night flashed through my mind. My hands clenched tighter around the necklace when I felt Aline's smirk run through my memory.

Still absorbed in my thoughts, I barely noticed the large group of people that had gathered around one of the benches.

Shouts rang in the air, and I identified the voice as Aline.

I managed to make my way through the crowd towards the sound of the shouts and gasped when I saw the papers that were strewn on the ground and the tears running down the red-faced Aline.

Jace was standing in front of her, his back to me. I couldn't see the expression on his face as Aline continued her shouting match at him. I wasn't paying attention to Aline anymore; I just wanted Jace to turn around so that I could see if he was alright.

I glanced at Aline when she had paused her shouting. Her hand had gone up to cover her face and she tried to stifle her sobs. I almost felt sorry for her, and I would have if she hadn't attacked me so obviously last night.

"I knew Jace," she said as her voice calmed. "I knew that you never could love me as much. But I still can't believe you didn't pick me, even after everything I gave you! So we're done, Jace. I've had enough."

Trust Aline to make her breakup as public as possible. With one last glare at Jace, she brushed his shoulder with a bit of force as she stomped away. I froze when I saw that she was coming in my direction, though I wasn't sure if it was out of fear or something else.

When she caught sight of me, she snarled at me and said, "I hope you're happy." She cast a filthy look at the necklace that rested on my shirt and left.

Jace still had not turned around. The crowd slowly started to seep away with hushed amusement and curiosity, with some people occasionally glancing back at Jace's still form.

I stayed where I was, quietly waiting for Jace to at least show some sign of life. Part of me was lost however; it was rare to see any girl break up with Jace, and it was even rarer to see Jace upset. Usually, he would brush off a girl like he would a fly but god knows why Aline was different.

Just as I reached forward to touch Jace's shoulder, he jerked around to look at me. His face was stone cold, his golden eyes almost blank when they met mine. A spark of emotion passed through them when he saw who I was, and I could see his jaw harden.

I didn't know what to say, but I had to say something. "Jace I-,"

Before I could finish, Jace stopped me. "Don't Clary. Don't worry about it."

He evaded my hand that had reached out to comfort him and walked away, his back stiff. I dropped my hand with dejection.

A stinging sensation spread through me. I'd never seen Jace like this, but what hurt more was that he hadn't let me help.

* * *

**:o**

**So there you have it!**

**First things first, the updates may be a bit slower for a week or two. My beta is going to be on vacation and I'm going to have some work so it's not very good timing. **

**But that also means that these next few chapters are going to be un-beta'd which makes me want to update less even further.**

**But reviews make me write faster, so keep them coming :D**

**Thank you guys for reading!**

**Yours,**

**~A.W.W**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey guys! I knew I said I wouldn't update but, I just had to. All those lovely reviews and encouragement really put me into the writing mood.**

**And I just finished The Infernal Devices and oh my god. I remember at one point of all three of the books I was thinking "This is the best book I've ever read", and then I went on to the next one. I can't describe how much I loved that series.**

**But aside from my fangirling, let's get on with the chapter! **

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

Chapter 5

Jace had quietly come and sat down at the lunch table today, avoiding the worried glances that we shot him every few moments. Jace Lightwood didn't need anyone's sympathy.

Yet he was eerily silent, and I could sense his mind was wandering far from the cafeteria. This wasn't the first break up he had gone through, oh god no. I couldn't count how many times girls had run away from him crying about how much of an asshole he was. Yet he had always brushed it off like dust on his shoulder and searched for his next target.

So what was wrong with him this time? He couldn't possibly have cared for Aline at all, as pretty as she was to look at. She was as shallow as a puddle with the mental capabilities of one as well. I glanced over at her usual table and scowled at the disgusting show she was putting on for the entire cafeteria. Tears were still pouring down her face as her friends crowded around her, offering sympathy and tissues.

My own lunch table had silenced themselves in fear of Jace and his sulking. I still couldn't wrap my mind around it; the Jace I had always known had treated the girls he dated as no more than trash. Toys that were meant to be played with only once or twice before they were too worn out to use.

Memories of Ashley Weller floated to my mind. It was when I really realized how low Jace could go, though I cared for him all the same.

"Man, Ashley's sure a fine thing." Jace had said, eyeing the girl two rows down from me and Jace with a predator's look.

I had rolled my eyes. There was no stopping Jace when he set his sights on a girl. Though I never had understood why he felt the need to discuss this with _me._ "You do know that she has a boyfriend right?"

Jace had smirked at me. "So? Makes it all the more fun."

My mouth had fallen open in horror. "Jace!"

He had ended the discussion however and I had let out a sigh, worried for the safety of Ashley.

Later that day, I was walking down to my locker where I would usually wait for Jace and Isabelle. Neither of them was in sight that day, so I had sat down at the base of my locker with a book open in my lap.

Muted sounds had taken my attention away from the book; they were coming from the classroom a few feet down from where I had been sitting.

Curiosity getting the better of me, I had gotten up to slowly peer into the classroom to find Ashley and Jace in a fierce tangle on top of one of the teacher's desk, their lips glued together. My hand had flown to my mouth to silence the surprised gasp that had escaped my lips and I backed away as quietly as I could.

_Jace, you idiot. _A tinge of fury had surfaced after the initial shock had worn off. Of all places why a classroom? And more specifically why the teacher's _desk?_

But I had been used to Jace's…forwardness with girls by then. There was still the slight disappointment that he had convinced a girl that was already taken into doing things with him. He should have known no girl could say no.

That hadn't been the last of it though. A few days later, he had walked straight up to Ashley's boyfriend and said, "You need to control your girlfriend more. She shouldn't go around kissing people like that."

He had smirked and walked away as her boyfriend stood in horror. Lucky for Jace the guy hadn't been a violent type, or else I'm sure he would have gotten a punch to the face that day.

The worst part was that he had dumped Ashley that same day, saying he wasn't interested anymore. He had ignored her pleas and her sweet words and had just ended it. And that's what it had always been like.

Until now.

Jace was sitting with his arms crossed over his chest and he legs stretched out under the table. He was also studiously ignoring what the rest of us were doing. Looking at him now, uncharacteristically silent and brooding, there was something that I just had to know. If he was so attached to her, what had happened that had made her want to let him go?

Gathering what courage I had, I tentatively made a move to ask. "Jace?"

I could see Isabelle shooting me a warning glare from the corner of my eye. _This is a dangerous zone, Clary. Tread carefully or else you'll end up in pieces._

Jace's eyes flickered up and lingered on my face but went back down to his lap. I feared he was going to ignore me completely until he asked, "What?"

By now, everyone's eyes were on me and Jace. Simon and Alec seemed to physically cower away from where Jace was sitting, as if expecting an explosion of some sort. Seeing the fire in Jace's narrowed eyes, I expected no less.

I gave him a small smile. "I…was just wondering. What happened exactly? Between you and…Aline?" His gaze had darkened by the time I finished the sentence and I resisted the urge to hide behind Isabelle.

He was still for another few moments, before he scraped his chair back against the floor and stood up. "You don't need to worry about it."

I watched his receding form with slight annoyance, the hurt from earlier this morning resurfacing. He was my friend wasn't he? It had everything to do with me why he was upset, and I had every right to know what was going on. A small part of me knew that it was just Jace and his personality but I couldn't shake off the discomfort.

My mind was preoccupied was Jace all day, or at least more than usual. What with the fact he was actually _caring_ for once, everything I had known was proven to false. I eventually came up with a plan to corner him after classes were over, maybe as he was walking to his car. Whatever I could do to get the truth out of him.

My hand clutched my bag nervously as I waited for him to come out of the building. The fear that he would turn me away again churned my insides and made my heart race but I pushed it all away. By the time I saw his golden curls appear in the crowd, I was calm and prepared to interrogate him.

Engrossed in his thoughts and his eyes on his feet, Jace didn't notice that I was standing next to his car until he was only a few feet away. This time, he rolled his eyes at me.

"Come on Clary. What do you want from me?"

I ignored the sting his words put in my heart. "I want to know what happened."

Jace scoffed. "Clary can you please stop being ridiculous-,"

"I need to know Jace, you're my _friend._ I want to know why you're so upset." My voice had risen a few octaves and the desperation in it surprised even me.

"Uhm, maybe because I just broke up with my girlfriend?"

I snorted. "Since when did you care about any girl you dated?"

I waited for the snide remark back, but got nothing. My face blanked when I saw that he had cast his eyes downward.

He spoke softly, his eyes not shifting from the ground. "I did actually care about her Clary, as surprising as it is. But I'm not answering any more questions and definitely not to _you."_

The last word drove straight through me and kept me frozen in shock. Jace walked around me and got into his car, driving out of the parking lot as I tried to regain the ability to move my legs.

* * *

"I just don't get him anymore. He's supposed to be my _friend_ Isabelle. We've been so for 10 years, so why can't he even tell me this much?"

Hurt had settled into rage by the time night had come, and Isabelle lounged across my bed with a plate of fruit as she took in my pacing and nearly incoherent sentences. She popped a strawberry into her mouth as she watched.

"You're an idiot Clary." Isabelle's voice was transfigured by the strawberry that was in her mouth. I paused in my pacing to stare at her.

"I- what?"

She just shook her head and picked through the plate for another strawberry. I looked at her confused for another second before I flopped down next to her with a huff to stare at the pasted on stars on my ceiling.

I could feel her eyes follow me carefully. "You really want to know don't you?"

I nodded. "Very much so."

I heard her sigh and turned toward her with curiosity. Her teeth were biting her lip, as if she were debating whether or not to say the next few words.

"Just spit it out, Isabelle. You know you're not good with keeping things from me."

She sighed again. "You're right, I can't. Well the thing is, Aline has been talking. She's been telling all her friends why she and Jace broke up and..."

"And…?" I nudged her on, pushing myself up on my elbow so I could get a better look at her.

"She said that she broke up with Jace because he refused to stop seeing you."

_What?_

"He- wait what?"

Isabelle closed her eyes. "Apparently, Aline asked Jace to stop seeing you or something or else she would dump him and he denied her. That's what her friends have been saying anyways."

Images of Aline at the club flickered through my mind. I touched the necklace that was still hanging on me. It definitely had something to do with the present.

"Why in the world would she ever ask him to do that?"

Isabelle laughed a little. "Isn't it obvious Clary? She sees the way Jace treats you, and you guys have known each other for years. How else would she react? Besides, we can all see that you're in love with Jace."

My mouth which had already been agape in confusion fell open even wider. "No- No I don't Isabelle. Don't you think I would have told you if I was? And it's _Jace, _Isabelle. My _friend._"

"I don't know about that Clary, but whatever you two are it's enough to make any girlfriend of Jace's jealous."

I didn't know what to say to that. I couldn't possibly love Jace; all he was good for was getting on my nerves. Yet there were still some parts of him…

My hand rested on my necklace as my mind lingered on the fact that Jace had chosen to keep talking to me over his girlfriend, one that he seemed to be missing.

Flutters went through my heart at the thought. Jace had chosen me.

* * *

**Yay things get more interesting :D**

**I'm really enjoying this! And I'm very glad to see that you guys are too, I appreciate it a lot. **

**This will probably be my last update for a week however, unless I get put back into a writing mood ;)**

**Drop a review, and thanks for reading!**

**Yours,**

**~A.W.W**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey guys!**

**Sorry it's been longer than I said, but I wasn't too excited to write this chapter (or the next few comings ones for that matter) so I never really got around to it. But I'm here now right!**

**Also thanks for all the nice comments, they really make me happy :D**

**Hope you like this chapter!**

**Thanks again to TMI who got to work right after she got back from her trip :')**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot. All characters belong to Cassandra Clare.**

**On we go!**

* * *

Chapter 6

My fingers anxiously drummed the hood of Jace's car.

I hadn't been able to confront him at lunch when we were surrounded by our friends, and he had conveniently either been busy with something any other time I had managed to spot him or managed to escape the rare times I managed to corner him.

I couldn't help but scoff at his behavior. He was so much like a little kid whenever he was upset like this, but I had grown far too used to it. Jace avoided his problems with a finesse honed by years of practice.

After a few more minutes of frustrated waiting, Jace came sauntering towards his car. His face instantly pulled into an exasperated expression when he saw me standing beside it once again.

He wordlessly unlocked his car and opened the door, throwing his backpack into the backseat before he turned to face me. "Clary, if I needed to 'talk' to someone I would have called you-"

"I found out," I informed him, cutting off his pissy remark before it got too far. I crossed my arms over my chest and looked at him expectantly.

Jace stared back blankly for a few seconds. "Found out what, that Simon has had a gay crush on me since middle school?" He smirked. "You're kinda late on that one Cherry-."

I groaned, and his smirk widened in satisfaction. "Get over yourself Jace. I meant I found out why you broke up with Aline." I felt my face turn red, though I wasn't sure if it was out of annoyance with him or embarrassment for my boldness.

Jace's eyes hardened and I could see his jaw tense as he clenched his teeth. I looked away from him as he stood there silently, the heat in my face rising even further. I couldn't tell what he was thinking, much less what he was going to do.

Finally, Jace just sighed.

I looked up cautiously at the sound. He seemed to have a resigned look on his face as he gestured to the passenger door to his car. "Get in Clary. I'll give you a ride home today."

Though I wasn't entirely sure what he was thinking, I got in without a sound and clutched my backpack to my chest. He snickered when he saw how I was sitting and reached over to grab my backpack from my hands. "You look like a little kid, Clary," he teased. I scowled, crossing my arms as Jace threw the backpack into the backseat next to his.

I expected him to start the car right away, but Jace had leaned back into his seat, eyes closed and head resting on his hands. I sat silently, looking everywhere in the car but at his face until I couldn't handle the silence anymore. "Um, Jace?" I ventured to break the silence, hoping he wouldn't be as closed off and stony as before.

He opened one of his eyes but didn't move. "What is it?"

"So, is- is it true?" I stammered a bit, then frowned at myself. I cleared my throat and tried again. "Did you really break up with Aline because she asked you to stop seeing me?" I bit my lip, silently praying that the rumors were true.

He gave a small shrug. "It's true, though I didn't do much of the breaking up." He laughed a little harshly, opening the other eye and gazing out across the dashboard.

I tried to hide how pleased I was by his confirmation. "Well, she was a bitch anyway." I tried hard to sound nonchalant about it, but apparently my acting wasn't good enough because Jace looked over at me, amused.

"Since when did you use those types of words, Clary? Your mother wouldn't be too happy," he teased.

I stuck my tongue out at him, the joy from his response still seeping through my whole body. Jace chuckled and straightened himself up, looking at me with some mischief. "Besides, as if I would let a _girl _tell me who I can and can't talk to," he scoffed.

He laughed and dodged me as I reached across the console to sock him in the arm. "I'm just kidding, Clary."

I laughed with him, but there was something that was still bothering me. "Jace?"

"Mhmm?" he murmured, leaning back and closing his eyes again.

I hesitated before I asked, "Are you really that upset about breaking up with Aline?" That had to be the only explanation for his leave-me-alone-or-else-I'll-bite-you attitude. I mean, what else could her breaking up with him have left him so damn moody about?

Jace let out a loud laugh at that. "Is that what it looked like?" he guffawed, looking over at me incredulously. I stared at him, confused, as he continued to laugh.

"Yes, actually that's exactly what it's looked like," I replied slowly, cautiously observing his mirth. "Besides, you even _said_ that you cared about her."

He calmed himself down enough to answer, "No Cherrydrop, I'm not upset about that," he assured me. "Though it hurts to know that that's what you thought." His hands flew to his heart in mock pain.

_He didn't miss Aline? _"Then what have you been upset about?" I demanded. "There has to be a reason we've seen the slightly less handsome side of you these past few days."

The laughter left his face suddenly and he turned towards the window. I thought he wasn't going to answer until he suddenly looked back at me with a smile. "Well, let's get you home. I have to celebrate my freedom tonight." He winked, and I rolled my eyes in response as he popped in a CD and cranked the volume.

Jace had turned the key and backed out of the parking lot by the time I realized he had totally evaded my question. But my mind didn't focus too much on that; it felt like a great load of weight had been lifted off my shoulders.

I had a smile on my face the entire ride home.

* * *

JPOV

_Well, she looked happy. _I chuckled as I threw the keys onto my desk and flopped down on my bed with my legs hanging off the side. It felt good to be a free man again, especially considering how high maintenance Aline had been as a girlfriend. Damn, she was lucky she was pretty.

_Then why are you upset? _Clary's question rang in my head.

I closed my eyes, rolling onto my side and staring at the wall. When Aline had asked me to stop seeing Clary, something had raged inside of me that I couldn't (or just didn't really want to) identify. But the answer had been obvious; I couldn't just stop seeing Clary. She'd been part of my life for a decade, far longer than my snippy girlfriend. Ex-girlfriend.

I rubbed a hand over my face. I hadn't been upset about Aline. I had been _confused __about __Clary._

Any time I even so much as looked at Clary, I felt that swell of confusion grow even more inside me. Maybe Aline had made me realize how important Clary was to me, and though I never had admitted it to anyone, Clary was truly an essential figure in my life. I didn't even like admitting that to myself. Jace Lightwood needed no woman.

To affirm this to myself, I decided to just avoid her. Though I couldn't believe I went as far as to say I truly cared about Aline…

When the door to my room banged open, I barely even had the energy to groan. After the day of unnecessary drama, I was ready for a nap.

I hoisted myself onto my elbow, the annoyance clear on my face as I turned my head to glare at the intruder. Izzy stood in my doorway with her eyes narrowed at me and her hands crossed over her chest. "Jace Lightwood. What in the world are you thinking?" she demanded, striding into my room with all the fury of a thousand furious things crackling in her demeanor.

I was tired, okay? And metaphors were never my strong suit.

I blinked, realizing that she was expecting me to know about what she was so pissed off for and have a response. Why was everyone so bent on pointing fingers at me today? "What are you talking about Iz?" I sighed, flopping back down into the blankets.

Her accusing eyes narrowed even further on me. "Do you like Clary?" she asked bluntly.

I scoffed without thinking. "I couldn't possibly like her Iz," I replied immediately. "She's neither hot nor beautiful." I turned away from Izzy so she couldn't look at my face. God knows she that she saw things much too easily when somebody wanted to hide them.

Though I wasn't entirely sure what was on my face that I wanted to hide,

"Jace I swear to God, you better not hurt her," Izzy threatened. "You know her; she's got the innocence of a damn baby."

I finally looked up at Isabelle with confusion. "What do you even mean?" I asked. I was thoroughly done with her dancing around the point of the visit.

She sighed and sat down on the bed next to me. "What do you think she's going to think, Jace?" Izzy said in a quieter voice, gazing forward at the wall instead of at me. "You broke up with your girlfriend for her and I know that you dropped her off today. She's probably thinking what any girl would like to think."

And then it hit me. "She can't be thinking that Iz," I disagreed instantly. "We're _friends. _And very good friends at that."

Isabelle pursed her lips, turning to look me in the eye. "Jace, you're such an idiot," she informed me exasperatedly. "But don't you dare lead her on."

I took a deep breath and put on a smirk. I knew exactly how to fix this. "You don't have to worry about that Iz," I assured her. "I think can handle it."

"You better, Jace," Izzy warned seriously. "You and I both know you don't deserve her, and she doesn't deserve to have her heart broken. Take care of it." With that, she got up and left the room, her hands clenched at her sides.

_You don't deserve her._

Izzy was never one to lay it down lightly, but those words couldn't have been truer.

Especially not after what I had to do now.

* * *

**Ah Jace. You make me feel many emotions at once, and they don't all compliment each other. **

**Whatcha guys think/ what do you think he's going to do?**

**Also sorry for not being able to respond to all of last chapter's reviews, I promise to get to all of them this time!**

**The next few chapters will be interesting but will make you want to kill either Jace or Clary or both. Warning you so you don't all yell at me later.**

**So with that, drop a review and thanks for reading!**

**Yours,**

**~A.W.W**


	7. Chapter 7

**Not much to say, let's get straight to the story!**

**BUT OH YEAH TMI I LOVE YOU YOU'RE THE BEST BETA EVER I CAN'T EXPRESS.**

**Seriously you guys have no idea how wonderful she is xD**

**With that out of my system...**

**On we go!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

I hummed as I spread butter on my toast, unable to get the smile off of my face. The kitchen was filled with the soft sunlight of the morning as I sat across from my mom at the kitchen table, happily anticipating the rest of the day.

My smile grew wider as I recalled yesterday. _Jace. _My hand ran the knife a little faster over the toast as I suddenly felt a burst of anxiousness to see him again.

_Anxious to see Jace? C'mon Clary. What are you even hoping for? _I pushed the thoughts away before any more confusing feelings arose.

As I continued fixing my breakfast, I was oblivious to my mom's curious gaze from over her cup of coffee until she suddenly cleared her throat. "Something good happen?" she asked, raising one of her eyebrows at me.

The butter knife froze in my hand. "No, not really… why?" I answered, resuming the buttering of my toast and throwing on my best innocent look to deter her from any unnecessary questions.

She set her cup down with a chuckle. "Clary, you never get up in time for breakfast but when I came down this morning, you were already fully conscious with bread toasting. I think I'm awake enough to know that something is up."

I shrugged. "Good night's sleep?" I offered weakly. She didn't need to know what was making me so happy when I didn't have a clear explanation for it myself.

Rolling her eyes, she playfully threw her hands up in the air. "Fine, don't tell me if you don't want to, Miss Evasive!" I held back a smile as I watched her shuffle to her studio. It was going to be a good day.

Jace was mysteriously absent from the lunch table, sending a pang of disappointment through me when I first caught sight of his empty chair next to Alec. Isabelle patted my curls in greeting as I sat down. "Know where Jace is?" I asked her as I began testing out today's slog of food.

I could've sworn I saw her eyes narrow considerably, but her expression smoothed out in a second. "No, why? Do you need something from him?" Izzy asked, taking a bite of her own food.

I shook my head. "Nah, I was just wondering." I passed off the slight change in Isabelle's face as a trick of the light, and went back to picking through my food. I hadn't said anything that might have set her off, so it must have been my imagination.

Simon moved to occupy the seat Jace usually did and leaned towards me. "Hey Clare bear." He waggled his eyebrows at me at the use of my old nickname.

I resisted the urge to stab at him with my dirty fork. "Do not call me that," I ordered, shooting a glare in his direction. Unfortunately, it only caused his smile to grow while his gaze fell onto the necklace that was partially hidden by my hair. Stretching his hand forward, Simon brushed away the curls that were obscuring the necklace to get a closer look.

In all the years I hand known him, he had never been one for unnecessary contact. The sudden graze of his hand on my skin was slightly uncomfortable and very unexpected. I couldn't control the heat that rose to my face, and sputtered as his hand stayed where it was at the base of my neck. "Wh- what are you doing, Simon?" I demanded, a little staggered by this random action.

After scrutinizing the necklace, he looked at me over the top of his glasses curiously. "You've been wearing this a lot lately," he observed. "Where did you get it?"

My blush grew considerably. "It was a gift," I mumbled, surprised when his eyes narrowed, suddenly icy. Simon quickly removed his hand and turned away from me, his eyes fixating on the food in front of him. The table had suddenly grown quiet as Alec looked awkwardly away and Isabelle silently ripped pieces off of her sandwich. By the time the blush had drained from my cheeks, everyone had gotten up and left without a word.

Okay. That was more than a little weird.

Classes passed by in a blur as I felt myself growing more and more restless as I anticipated seeing Jace. _Friends can ask friends for rides, right? _I thought as I walked out to the parking lot and stood around his car. He had given me rides anytime I needed them before, so today would be no exception.

Uncomfortable images of lunch rose up in my mind. Not only had Simon acted weird, but Isabelle had been uncharacteristically silent as well. There wasn't much that could silence Isabelle Lightwood, whether it was a bad hair day or a nasty break up, and neither of those had occurred. What was up with her?

I paced around Jace's car a while longer until I glanced at the time on my phone. _He's never this late._ Craning my neck to see if I could catch sight of his golden curls, I walked back towards the back of the building to the door that would be closest to his locker. As I rounded the corner, I came to a sudden halt when I saw a couple fervently making out behind the building. I almost went back the way I came to give them space, until something made me turn around to look more closely.

The girl's hands were tangled in the yellow locks of the boy who had her pinned against the wall, one leg hitched up slightly around him. My mouth fell open and a tiny gasp escaped, but it was enough to pull Jace and the girl slightly out of their embrace.

Jace looked at me steadily for a second, but dropped his gaze back to the other girl without a word of explanation in my direction.

And that was when I turned and ran.

* * *

Jace POV

I was sick to the stomach as I watched Clary turn the corner and run away, and swatted away the other girl's hands as they tried to pull me back to her. I didn't even know the girl's name, but she was more than willing to get the job that I needed done. Ignoring her cries of confused distress, I headed back towards my car.

_God damn it all. _I knew exactly where she would go looking when she couldn't find me, and it had worked out how I had planned it in my head. If not, I would have tried again tomorrow.

But why did it hurt so much?

I slammed one hand against the car's frame. It was something I had to do, to protect Clary, to keep her from falling for me. But it didn't make it any less painful.

My shaking hands couldn't get the key in ignition and I had to sit there for a couple minutes in silence to calm myself before I could pull out of the parking lot.

Something inside me froze at the thought of losing Clary. I needed Clary, I knew that much. She was someone who I valued almost as much as myself. But something vastly annoying and ominously wise told me that she wouldn't want to be friends with me any longer.

_But that's okay, because it's what you wanted right? You wanted to protect her from yourself, right?_

That much was true. She deserved better than me any way, any day.

I slowed the car to a stop as I recognized the street I was on.

_Shit._

The car had stopped right in front of Clary's house. I cursed myself for unconsciously driving here but couldn't stop from peering up at the empty windows. It seemed she wasn't home yet.

A flicker of worry passed through me, but I ignored it and restarted the car.

_You have no right to be worried, Jace Lightwood._

* * *

Clary POV

The sky had turned dark by the time I had gotten home.

"Clary? Are you home?" My mom's slightly worried voice rang through the house.

I took a second to compose myself in case my voice shook. "Yeah mom, I had a little bit of work to finish at school. Sorry I'm late." I was surprised at how even my voice came out in complete contrast to the state of my mind.

"Well, that's alright. Want anything to eat?" she offered.

"I'm good, thanks." I rushed towards the stairs and up to my room before she could come investigating. I shut my door and leaned against it, momentarily glad to be in the safety of my room.

The faint light of twilight was all that illuminated the space, the outlines of the bed and furniture barely visible. I made my way over to the bed and fell on top of it, digging into the unmade covers. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get rid of the image of the Jace and the girl plastered together from my mind. I would've thought I'd be used to him and his habits with girls by now, but the sight had sent daggers into me.

I could feel the wetness on my face as a tear escaped and fell onto the blankets. Some sort of hope had died within me today, and it took me a while to realize exactly what it was.

The tears were escaping more freely now, slowly dampening the sheets underneath me. I cursed myself silently, first because it had taken me ten years to realize it, and second because it had to be Jace of all people.

My mind wandered to when we were both seven, and my mom had asked if I wanted to come with her to drop off a painting at the Lightwood house. I had eagerly agreed at the time, going as far as putting on my nicest dress. I stood in front of my mirror admiring it until my mom called me down. When my mom had seen my bounce down the stairs in the dress, she had scolded me gently. "We're only going to be there for ten minutes, Clary," she had said, watching me in amusement as I paraded in the swishy skirts. "Why are you wearing that?"

I hadn't known at the time, but I had felt a strange urge to look nice even if I was only going to see Jace for a moment, and I hadn't been disappointed.

As the adults were talking inside and Isabelle had been nowhere to be found, Jace had indifferently agreed to go into the backyard to play for a little while. As we had walked out onto the grass, I held my hands behind my back and watched as Jace was talking about something. I couldn't remember what he had been saying or what I had replied with, but I remembered the sight of his hair glinting in the sun and the fervor with which he was talking without any trouble at all.

Perhaps I should have known since then what I felt about Jace. Perhaps I could have saved myself from this pain if I had dissuaded myself then.

But then again, I was seven. I could cut myself a break. A very, very slight break. Even my seven year old self should have seen what I was getting myself into.

Out of all the people I knew, why Jace? Why did it have to be the one guy who had broken countless hearts and was almost definitely going to break mine? Why did it have to be the friend who I couldn't bear to lose?

But all that aside, one thing was strikingly clear.

I loved Jace.

Well, shit.

* * *

**Don't kill me, don't kill me, don't kill me.**

**Thank you all so much for those kind words and thank you all for reading :D**

**But seriously, I want to wake up tomorrow don't be too angry :c**

**Review my lovelies!**

**Yours,**

**~A.W.W.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hey guys!**

**Hope you all are doing well, because I've realized life really smacks you in the face sometimes.**

**But sorry for the longish wait, I hope that this chapter was worth it!**

**Then again, one week type updates is not that bad ;D**

**TMI, you crazy talented girl you. I would have no wit if I did not have you.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**So on we go!**

* * *

I did not want to see Jace Lightwood.

In fact, I didn't want to see anyone again, _ever._

That is why when my mother wandered into my room the next morning wondering why I hadn't gotten up, I gave her a half-hearted excuse of feeling sick and not wanting to go to school. But when she poured out worried comments and incessantly nagged about going to the doctor's for three minutes straight, I waved her away and got out of bed to drag myself to the bathroom.

I held back a cringe when I saw my face in the mirror. Last night had taken a toll on my eyes, making them stand out red and puffy against my blotchy skin. My pale complexion was bad enough on a normal day, but the irregular splotches of red made me look like a clown.

If anyone dared to make jokes about my face matching my hair, I would be kicking their sorry ass straight to hell.

Sending a silent curse at Jace, I worked to make my face presentable. _It's your own fault, Clary. You should have known better than to let yourself fall for Jace._

I couldn't stop my eyes from drifting to the little jewelry tray next to my sink where I deposited my necklace every night. The small cherries shimmered as though they were laughing at me, silently reminding me of everything I had seen Jace do and how ridiculously unreasonable my feelings were.

I left the bathroom in a huff, leaving the necklace lying where it was.

* * *

I could feel Isabelle's stare on the back of my head as soon as I sat down in first period. I started out ignoring it as best as I could, pretending to be immersed in a new drawing in my sketchbook while somewhat paying attention to the class itself.

It had been a while since I last brought my sketchbook to school, but something told me I was going to need it to distract me today.

The quiet sound of someone trying to inconspicuously tear paper alerted me to Isabelle's plan. I waited a moment in resignation, and just as I had expected, a note fell into my lap from over my shoulder.

Pausing from my drawing and taking a quick glance towards our teacher, who was reading from a textbook at the front of the room, I slowly unfolded the crumpled paper.

_Jace was totally out of it yesterday and you weren't picking up your phone. What's up?_

I sighed. There wasn't anything that could be hidden from Isabelle, and I knew I wasn't doing myself any good keeping it from her. Grabbing the pencil that lay on my desk, I scribbled back a quick answer.

_I ran in on Jace making out with a girl._

There. The metaphorical Band-Aid had been ripped off. I tossed the paper back over my shoulder and turned towards the teacher as I waited for her response.

A loud snort sounded throughout the room, and everyone turned towards Isabelle. I squeezed my eyes shut in a wince for a moment, then managed to slowly turn around and stare at her like the rest of the class. Thankfully, she had hidden the note somewhere when the teacher came around to her desk.

"Something to share, Ms. Lightwood?" His beady eyes fell onto her desk and scrutinized her desk, searching for something that should not be there.

"No, I didn't mean to make a sound. I'm sorry I disturbed your class." Isabelle threw on a bright smile, and the teacher walked away with pursed lips when he saw nothing out of the ordinary.

It was another few minutes before Isabelle took the risk to pass me another note.

_What's so special about that? Jace is always making out with girls. You and I both know that anything with boobs will do for him._

This time, it was my turn to snort, though I hid it with much more success than my friend had. _Isabelle couldn't have been more right, _I thought with a sigh.

But then I decided to tell her the truth.

When I had given her my response, she had gasped in surprise. Thankfully, the dismissal bell had rung just in time so that the rustling of everyone's seats hid her response.

"You _what?" _She demanded, nearly tripping over her heeled shoes as she jumped out of her seat.

I bit my lip. It seemed ten times worse to say it out loud, yet a part of me wanted to hear confirmation of my feelings from my own mouth. Was I ready to share this? Did I want to make my feelings more solid and unavoidable by admitting them out loud?

I had no choice. They were already tearing me apart anyway.

"I like Jace."

When the words escaped my lips, Isabelle began to shake her head. "Took you long enough Clary," she sighed. I tried to remain stoic, but she caught my expression and brought a hand to my shoulder in comfort. "I'm sorry Clary, I really am," she assured me, her lips twisting in a regretful, wistful little half smile. "I just wish you had realized it sooner. Then maybe I could have told you he was an asshat choice. "

I gave her a small smile, unable to do or say anything more. But I disagreed with Isabelle; it wouldn't have been better to realize my feelings earlier.

It would have been better if I hadn't realized it at _all._

* * *

JPOV

Sebastian raised his eyebrows when he saw me heading towards their table. "Jace, this is new," he remarked, watching my approach. "You haven't been here in ages, bro."

I shrugged and fell into a seat. I had no interest in sitting near Clary today, or seeing her at all for that matter. At least, that's what I was telling myself.

But when that flash of red came into my view, my eyes were fixed on Clary. From where I was sitting, I could see her glancing nervously around the cafeteria.

_She's looking for me._

A small spark of hope filled me for a brief second before I shut it off. There was no reason she would be looking for me, aside from making sure I was as far away as possible. I averted my eyes as her wandering gaze fell closer to Sebastian's table. The other guys were fooling around too much to notice how damn preoccupied I was, but Sebastian had his gaze on me.

"What's wrong Lightwood?" he demanded. "You're fidgeting."

I shook my head at him, trying to let him know to leave me _alone, _but the questions still continued. "You were looking at Clary weren't you? Why's that? Something happen with the redhead?" He smirked at me and nudged me with his elbow.

I scowled. "Keep out of it Verlac," I muttered, giving him a good glare. The last thing I needed was someone badgering me about Clary. She was on my mind enough as it was, what with everything that had happened yesterday.

The smirk didn't fall off the bastard's face. "Then you wouldn't mind if I made a move on her, would you?" Sebastian asked slyly, avidly watching me for a reaction. He lived for provoking people into finding out their secrets, and seeing as he never could get anything out of me, this was a golden chance for him. "I've had my eye on her for a while, but I was under the impression you were interested…"

I tensed, fighting myself ferociously not to take the bait he laid out and spill anything I didn't want said. Before anything concerning Clary broke free of my carefully maintained walls, I relaxed and shrugged again.

"Do what you want Sebastian, I couldn't care less," I replied as smoothly as I could. I tried not to respond to his widening smile. My concern only faded a little when I remembered that Sebastian always talked about girls but never made a move on any of them in the past.

As lunch progressed, I noticeably felt my mind and my eyes following Clary more and more. When she got up to throw away some trash, a pang of hurt ran through me as I noticed her bare neck. The necklace I had given her was no longer sparkling above the collar of her shirt. She hadn't taken it off in the last week, and not seeing it there now made me surprisingly upset.

I mentally cursed myself. Her reaction to seeing me with that girl had only confirmed what Isabelle had said, and suddenly a lot of things made more sense. Clary made more sense. Everything she had done in the last few years, from her sudden smiles, to the way she talked, to the way he responded to me; it all made sense.

I cursed myself again. For someone who took pride in knowing how to work girls, it baffled me that I didn't notice it before. Everything about Clary screamed it; everything she did spelled it out clearly.

Clarissa Fray, my childhood friend, a girl who was almost a sister to me, had liked me for years. Years.

And I didn't know the first thing in hell what to do about it.

* * *

CPOV

As the final bell rang, I walked back to my locker, not paying very much attention to anything. Jace's absence at lunch made it clear he wasn't any keener on seeing me than I was on him. And I was totally okay with that.

As I shuffled through my books and packed my bag to take home, I realized that I was actually kind of annoyed with him. There was no reason for him to ignore me like that. So what if I had accidentally walked in on him kissing a girl? For all I, Clarissa Fray, cared, he could kiss all the girls in school if he so wanted.

And yet, even as the thought crossed my mind, another voice screamed at me that it wasn't true. I didn't want to see Jace kiss any random girl in school, and I was sure that I would fall to pieces if I had to go through that again.

I jumped in surprise as a hand fell onto my shoulder. I turned to find Simon smiling at me just a little too brightly. "Give me your bag," he said, stretching out his arm as I closed my locker door.

I looked at him suspiciously. Since when had Simon turned into a gentleman?

He sighed but waved his hand. "Come on, Clare bear. I'm giving you a ride today," he announced.

I let the bag slip into his hands, using the action to distract him as I hid my cringe. Simon's car wasn't exactly in best shape. "Oh? Any special reason?" I asked as we walked down the short hallway to the back door and out into the parking lot.

Simon didn't say anything for a few seconds but gave me a small smile. "Isabelle told me what happened."

I should have expected it. Making a mental note to snap at Isabelle later, I asked, "What exactly did she tell you happened?"

"She said you saw Jace kissing a girl." Simon looked sideways at me with an apologetic smile.

I stayed silent, unsure of what I was supposed to say. I felt bad that I hadn't told Simon myself, considering he was almost as close to me as Isabelle was.

"Don't think about it too much Clary," Simon assured me as we approached his rather vintage car. "Jace is an asshole anyways." I barely heard the last part because he had muttered it as he unlocked the driver's door.

Defensiveness ignited inside of me. "Don't say that Simon," I retorted, "you know he's not that bad really." And I meant it. As much of a player as he was, I could depend on Jace as easily as I could Isabelle or Simon.

"It doesn't change the fact that he is, Clary. He's too arrogant for his own good." Simon scowled as he slid into his car, and I followed suit with a sigh.

"He's still our friend, Simon." I looked over at him, surprised at how unhappy he seemed. The turmoil of emotions clear on his face seemed just a bit too powerful for what the situation called for.

"He uses girls and he's used _you__," Simon snarled, gripping the steering wheel in front of him just a smidge too tightly._ "How can I call him a friend?"

I froze in shock. I'd never seen this side of Simon before, though he had been acting weird in the past few weeks. "I don't get it Simon," I said quietly, staring him down for a hint of a clue why he was acting this way. "Why are you so mad-"

"Because I see the way you look at him!" Simon suddenly burst out. "I see the way you look at him, Clary. I wanted to tell you to stop." Simon turned his head, arms still taut and fists clenching the steering wheel as he looked at me with a strange, desperate look in his eyes. "I wanted to tell you that he would only end up hurting you."

"Simon how could you possibly have known that?" I snapped. "And why do you care about how I feel for Jace?" I felt myself getting angrier at Simon. It wasn't fair; it wasn't fair for him to tell me how I should feel when I barely knew how to feel myself.

"Because," Simon's voice had lowered considerably, and I was surprised to hear how bitter it was, "I've been in love with you for ten years, so I thought it seemed like time to find out whether you felt the same about me. Which, I guess, you don't."

My hands shook. Simon's voice had been low, but I had felt the weight of his words on every inch of my body. I sat in Simon's old rusting car in dead silence, unable to say a word.

When I finally found the courage to open my mouth, Simon put a hand up to stop me.

"Don't," he said, his voice dull. "There's nothing you can say." He finally let go of his clenched grip on the steering wheel and turned the key in ignition. I let out a small, almost involuntary sound of protest.

He looked at me levelly. "I'll drive you home Clary. Don't worry about it."

And that was all he said for the rest of the drive home. I kept my gaze out the window, unable to handle the blank look on Simon's face.

He dropped me home without a word and sped off without a glance in my direction. It took all I had not to scream on the spot as I saw everything I cared for so dearly…

…begin to just slip away.

* * *

**And there we have it.**

**Thanks for all the love, it's making me all fuzzy on the inside c:**

**You guys are the best lol~**

**Also why I have your attention, I want to work on a cover pic for this story, so any ideas?**

**Drop a review, tell me what you think!**

**Yours,**

**~A.W.W**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey again guys!**

**Ahhh, I can't handle the drama either. This chapter is mostly a filler, but it necessary in order for the next chapter to occur.**

***wink wink***

**Also, I noticed that Clary's mom is really OOC in this story. I did that on purpose; I just would prefer to have her mother like this now for future purposes. **

**As well, Max will not be taking part in this story. Sadface.**

**But on we go!**

**Disclaimer: Everything belongs to Cassy.**

* * *

Chapter 9

Unlike yesterday, I _did _end up staying in bed for the entire day, forcibly blocking out any uncomfortable thoughts that passed through my mind. Somehow, my mother had sensed my mood and had chosen to leave me alone about it. It was Friday after all, what harm was there in missing one measly day?

Sometimes I was truly thankful for such a perceptive mom.

By the time midday rolled around, the floor around my bed was strewn with crumpled pages from my sketchbook, all filled with random crappy doodles reflecting my crappy mood. Sketching was the only thing that I had found to keep my mind occupied, though none of the sketches had turned out as I wanted. Normally, I never would have turned to such behavior: the wasting of precious sketching paper was high on my list of intolerable acts. But today, I just couldn't bring myself to care.

Two weeks ago, Simon and I were sitting on Isabelle's couch watching a movie completely, comfortable with each other. A week ago, Simon had gathered with Isabelle and Alec at my house to celebrate my seventeenth birthday like he had for many years. A few days ago, Simon was joking around with me as if nothing was wrong.

So why did it feel like we were such strangers now?

My hand itched to reach over and grab my phone from my bedside bookshelf. I wanted to call Simon, to check up on him but I knew it would be no use. The look on his face in the car yesterday had told me well enough that I was the last person he would want to be comforting him right now.

I turned over in my bed. It was true that Simon had never really dated anyone before or had even shown any interest in anyone, but that included me. He had never acted like he was anything more than a close friend, which only made me more surprised at his sudden declaration yesterday.

_First Jace, now Simon._

I didn't know what to think. I was confused enough over Jace, but the thought of losing Simon drove me near the edge. Two of my oldest, closest friends, just-

The sudden ring of my phone broke through my thoughts. I sighed and, without bothering to move my head to look, reached over to grab it. I had a fairly good idea of who it was even before I read the name on the screen.

"Clarissa Adele Fray, where were you today?" Isabelle's accusing voice rang imperiously through the phone, making me wince a little at the volume after my solitary silence. "Are you sick?"

As overbearing as she was, I was glad that my well-kept friend could always be depended on without fail. "Not really," I hedged, not wanting to sound pathetic but knowing that I wouldn't get away with lying, "I just didn't feel like coming to school."

Isabelle paused for a second. "That's strange, you never miss school," she remarked surprisingly calmly. "Well I'm nearly at your house anyway so I'll talk to you in a second." She hung up and I couldn't help but laugh a little despite my situation.

As promised, the sound of Isabelle's bare feet running up the stairs alerted me of her presence only a few minutes later, and she came into my room and sat on the edge of my bed. I wasn't sure what to say, so I just watched as she put her purse down next to her and crossed her arms.

"You've been up to a lot of trouble with your male friends lately." She said, eyeing me warily. "First Jace, now Simon. Do you plan on chasing away Alec too?" She held up a hand to count off the names as ran down my imaginary hit list.

I groaned. "I didn't do anything Isabelle. Well, not much anyways," I added after a second thought.

Her eyes softened a bit as she looked over my bedraggled self again. "What happened then, Clary?" Isabelle asked, her voice less commanding and more understanding. "Jace is still avoiding everyone and Simon was in the worst of moods today. And then you decide to play the sick little princess and disappear from school."

I rubbed a hand against my face. It really did seem like a big mess.

Suddenly though, I remembered something Simon had said. I looked up at Isabelle with slight annoyance flaring up in my dampened emotions. "By the way, why in the world did you tell Simon about what I saw with Jace?" I demanded.

Isabelle didn't look the least bit apologetic. "You realize, Clary, that we've known you've liked Jace for years right?" she pointed out oh so delicately. "It's not news to us."

My mouth dropped open in surprise. "Isabelle, _I _didn't know I liked Jace until a few days ago, how could you guys have possibly known?" I cried.

But I knew the answer before I had finished the sentence. I had liked Jace for years; it was my own fault for not realizing.

Isabelle shook her head. "Never mind that though, care to explain what happened with Simon?"

I bit my lip as I struggled to formulate an answer. Isabelle was still looking at me very expectantly, so I forced myself to answer, albeit in an almost unintelligible mumble: "Simon told me he liked me."

A small voice spoke up from somewhere inside, reproaching me for downplaying it. _That's not true. He said he'd loved you. For ten years._

I ignored the voice and looked at Isabelle, but I was definitely not expecting to see the expression that was plastered on her face. Her eyes were wide and glossy with shock, lips slightly parted in an 'O', and her normally confident demeanor somehow now seemed…vulnerable?

"Isabelle, what's wrong?" I asked quickly, feeling alarmed. I leaned forward to place a hand on her arm, but her expression didn't change.

"He…he said that to you?" Isabelle's voice was strangely small and forced as she continued to gape at me.

I nodded slowly, completely lost about what she could be thinking about.

My hand fell away from her shoulder when she swiftly stood up. "I'm sorry Clary, I think I have to go," she said, avoiding my concerned gaze. Before I could say another word, Isabelle had grabbed her purse and quickly fled the room.

I stared in surprise and confusion as my mother came in almost right as Isabelle left, looking curious. "That's strange; she usually would stay for dinner," Mom remarked, casting a bemused glance after my escaping friend. "Did something happen between you two?"

"I…no?" I said hesitantly, not sure of the words leaving my mouth. I didn't know the answer myself; what exactly had just happened?

My mother gave me an understanding look and walked over to my bed. "Feeling better though?" she asked kindly. She sat down next to me and put an arm around my shoulders.

I shrugged under her arm. "I don't know."

My mother didn't ask any further. She rubbed my arm comfortingly and got up, promising me some cookies by the time I came downstairs.

But not even the promise of cookies could remove the sense of horror that had built up in my chest. I couldn't afford to lose another friend, I just couldn't.

Without my friends, I would fall apart.

* * *

JPOV

What I hadn't expected to see while sitting in the living room of the house watching TV was Izzy running through the front door, red with anger, and storming up the stairs with a little more force than strictly necessary.

I sighed. _There goes my plan to ignore everyone for the rest of my life._

I pulled myself off of the couch to go after her, completely aware that I could be walking to my death bed. But I couldn't help but follow my adoptive sister; it was strange and disconcerting to see her genuinely upset like that.

The door to her room had been left open as Isabelle paced the strip of wood between her vanity and her bed. She didn't seem to notice me as I leaned against the doorframe, so I lightly knocked to let her know she had company.

Her head snapped up to look at me. I raised an eyebrow, surprised to see the ice princess showing actual emotion. And not just emotion, but actual, frantic, heavy emotion.

"Something wrong, Iz?" I asked carefully.

She sat down onto her bed with her arms crossed, but threw on an overly bright smile. "Nothing, Jace darling, why would you think that?" she almost tittered, her voice unnaturally peppy.

I continued to stare at her with an eyebrow raised until she cracked under the pressure and dropped the act. She let out a sigh of dejection. "It just happens that Simon confessed that he liked Clary yesterday," she admitted.

"Weasel face?" I asked. Anger flared through me at the very thought.

Isabelle nodded, too caught up in her thoughts to reprimand me for the use of the nickname. I remembered in the back of my head that Isabelle had always taken a liking to the geek boy, but my mind seemed to be more interested in the fact that he had confessed to _Clary._

_My _Clary.

_Shit, Jace, what are you thinking?_

Since when had Clary ever been classified as _my_ Clary?

I pushed away the possessive thought and left Isabelle's room, so distracted by that thought that I didn't even realize I hadn't said a word to Isabelle in response, or react when she called after me to come back. As I entered my own room, I closed the door and leaned heavily against it.

I didn't know what it was, but I didn't like that Weasel Face was making a move on Clary. Especially not now, not when she was upset with me.

A flash of jealousy hit me as I pictured the two of them together, holding hands, hugging, _kissing_-

I shook my head to clear it of the images. _Jace Lightwood, you have no right to be jealous. __Absolutely no damn right._

But that didn't stop me from feeling it anyway.

* * *

**Ahahaha so excited for the next chapter. I have it written already ;)**

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**Drop a review my lovelies!**

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**~A.W.W**


	10. Chapter 10

**Wow I can't believe I'm posting this. I should stop writing beforehand because I can't stop myself from putting it up.**

**/lacks patience/**

**Anyways thank you guys so much for all the cookies! So as promised, here it is. It's pretty long too, so an extra treat :D**

**Enjoy ;)**

* * *

Chapter 10

Jace POV

The cheese sandwiches had been piled neatly into a brown paper bag when I set to work on carving a few apples. I grinned as I recalled Clary's love for my cheese sandwiches.

Was there anything I couldn't do?

I hoped that this pseudo picnic would be a suitable peace offering; I couldn't handle the thought of Clary being angry at me. Besides, I had done my job. I had let her know I wasn't interested in her, so there was no point in me avoiding her…

Right?

I sent a silent curse as the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs reached the kitchen. The parents were out to some business party and Alec was busy doing his own thing, so there could only be one person who was out and about. I had hoped to leave the house without anyone noticing and asking me where I was going but Isabelle ruined it as she walked in, groggy eyed.

_Play it cool, Jace._ "Did Sleeping Beauty wake up from her evening nap? You'd think you'd have something better to do on a Saturday night than bum around the house." I shook my head at Isabelle in effort to distract her from my labors.

Sticking her tongue out at me, she walked over to the cabinet to pull out a glass, still seemingly oblivious to what I had been doing beforehand.

Isabelle was fiercely protective of Clary, even more so than me as impossible as it may seem. She was the last person I wanted to know where I was heading to.

She looked better than before. It seemed that she had calmed herself after yesterday's shock, though I expected nothing less of her. In all the years we had lived together, there had been little she couldn't get through without batting her eyes.

Keeping my face composed as I watched her slug around the kitchen, I channeled my impatience into my fingers which were tapping the counter nervously. How long did it take to grab a glass of freaking water?

When she finally stumbled out, a breath of relief let itself out of my lungs. I grabbed a plastic container to throw the now-sliced apples into and stuffed it into the bag along with the sandwiches.

I looked into the bag meaningfully. _There's something missing._

"Ah, right. Chocolate." I said quietly. A smirk passed my lips as I realized Clary would be putty in my hands at the sight of chocolate.

After having taken two chocolate bars out of the pantry I turned back, whistling, to the bag to throw them in as well when a figure by the door stopped me in my tracks.

"Jace?" Isabelle was eyeing me curiously, "What are you doing?"

I shrugged, as if she hadn't caught me off guard. "Nothing, just packing a little snack for later. I'm heading out to the gym."

Isabelle snorted. "You never go to the gym. You say it's all 'too easy' for you."

My own words were biting me right back in the ass. Isabelle narrowed her eyes at me before they slid down to the paper bag resting on the counter.

She inched closer, straining to peer into the bag when she caught sight of the two chocolate bars that were still in my hand. Izzy's mouth fell into a small 'o' as she looked at me with accusation in her eyes.

"You're going to see Clary aren't you." Her voice was level, but I could sense anger brewing behind it.

I sighed and placed both hands onto the counter. How could I explain to Isabelle what I was feeling? That I was restless night and day at the thought of Clary so upset?

"Izzy, I-,"

"Jace you know better than this," she cut me off, "And you _know_ now that she likes you and _she _knows that she's always liked you. It was fine before but how can you keep getting her hopes up by doing things like this?"

"She's my friend Iz. You know that." I had to restrain myself from pleading with Isabelle, yet some of my desperation still found its way into my voice, "I promise not to lead her on or anything. Just let me fix things between us."

Isabelle pursed her lips and stared at me, her eyes fixing onto mine. After searching my face for a few moments, she let out an exasperated sigh.

"Whatever, Jace. As long as you know your boundaries." She turned on her heel and made her way towards the door, but paused midway to look back at me.

Her eyes had grown a bit gentler, and it almost looked like she was sorry. "I love both of you Jace, but I know when it's not going to work out. Save her and yourself the pain." With that she left, her footsteps echoing in the still house.

I put the chocolate bars into the brown paper back, barely aware that they had partially melted in my hands during the previous exchange.

I knew she was right, but it didn't change anything. It didn't change the fact that Clary was my friend, and it definitely didn't change the fact that I would be the first to stop Clary if things went too far.

I had that much sense.

* * *

Clary POV

Yoga is a lie.

In hopes of distracting myself from the suffocating wave of problems surrounding me, I had attempted the various yoga exercises that my mother had encouraged me to try.

Aside from looking ridiculous, all that had come out of it was aches and pains and even more frustration.

_You're a mess without Simon or Isabelle or Jace, Clary._

I threw away the thought. I could be perfectly independent when needed to be, right?

Yet there was still the empty feeling of loneliness. I needed to take my mind off of the whole situation before I actually went crazy.

I ended up back on my bed with a book, slowly losing myself into the pages as my world merged with fantasy. I was still somewhere in the middle of London when a knock sounded at my door that barely registered in my brain. It was not until my mother stuck her head in around the door that I was pulled out of the book and back into reality.

"Clary? The doorbell rang so many times, didn't you hear it?"

I waved the book at her. "Not really." Reading was a pastime that we both enjoyed and agreed to leave each other alone during. She knew exactly how lost one could get in the middle of a good book.

She nodded understandingly. "Well there's someone here to see you." Her face broke into an excited smile as she moved to reveal who was standing behind her.

It was only my stubbornness and my anger at Jace that stopped me from screaming in surprise and happiness when he came into view. He stood smirking at me in the doorway holding a paper bag for a few moments before he turned back to my mother.

"Thank you for letting me in, Jocelyn."

My mother gave him a warm smile. That traitor. "That's not a problem Jace. It's late already though, do you plan on staying over? Is Isabelle coming? The spare room is still open for you guys, you know that."

I cringed. My mother was of course referring to the times Jace or Izzy or Simon had crashed at my house when we were younger. When it didn't _matter._ It seemed that the concept of _teenager_ hadn't made sense to her yet.

I noticed Jace's smirk grow in size at the mention of sleeping over. "It's alright Jocelyn, I have some stuff to do tomorrow. Thank you for the offer though."

"Suit yourself then." With one last smile at Jace and me, my mother left, shutting the door behind her.

When Jace crossed the door towards my bed, I pointedly looked away to signal my continuing annoyance with him. He, however, did not seem to notice one bit.

"Guess what I brought?" he waved the paper bag he had brought in in front of my face.

I had to say, it piqued my curiosity. Yet I kept my eyes on the top left corner of my room, not giving a damn if he had the whole of Ireland in that bag.

"Come on, Clary. You know you love my cheese sandwiches." His voice dropped into a sweet coo as he pulled out one of the limp cheese sandwiches from the bag.

I caved. I turned to face him and snatched the sandwich from his hand and began to peel off the plastic wrap he had put around it. With a chuckle, he sat down on the bed next to me, placing the bag to the side.

The sandwiches actually were really good, okay.

I couldn't remember the last time he had sat next to me on my bed like this, but I was sure it certainly hadn't felt like it did now. I could sense his body next to mine in the few short inches that separated our arms, and his breathing was magnified to where it filled my ears.

Before I could completely lose my thought process, I took a bite of the sandwich. "So what brings you here?" I asked between mouthfuls.

"To find out why you're so mad at me." He gave me a playful half smile, but the look in his eyes made it seem like he knew more than he was letting on.

"I don't know what you're talking about." I huffed, taking another bite. I had no idea how to explain exactly why I was mad at him anyways.

"Well whatever it may be," Jace leaned in closer to me until his mouth was close to my ear, "I'm sorry."

I froze as his breath hit my ear and turned to him in shock, but he had already leaned back. My face heated up so I turned even farther away from him to hide my fresh blush. It wasn't until I had the first sandwich finished that I turned back to him.

"You're forgiven." I mumbled, but then said more strongly, "though only for the food."

There was that smirk again. "I know," was all he said, however.

He pulled out his own sandwich and we lapsed into silence for a few minutes, until he spoke up again. "Besides, you've never been able to stay mad at me for long."

He dodged the play punch I threw at him and held up the bag. "Don't hurt me, I have more treats."

I almost squealed in excitement as he pulled out a container of sliced apples. I felt a surge of affection for him when I saw that he remembered that I liked apples.

A huge grin spread across his face when he saw how excited I was. "See? I know exactly how to make you happy."

The previous blush returned again, but this time I found no excuse to hide it. Usually Jace would make fun of me to no end when he saw one of my famous blushes, but instead he tensed up.

I glanced up at him. He seemed to be searching for words, biting his lip with his chipped incisor. This surprised me. Jace Lightwood was never nervous, and he was definitely never speechless.

"Jace?" I asked, forgetting about my earlier embarrassment.

"Clary," Jace started, tentatively. "You know that you're my closest friend right?"

"I-uh, yes I do," I stuttered. The fact that we were close friends had always remained unspoken between us. What was it that made him suddenly want to reaffirm it aloud?

He seemed to relax a bit after I answered. "Just making sure," he sent up another one of his smirks, as if the tension from a few moments ago had never existed.

After the apples had been finished off and he had revealed the slightly mushed chocolate, we ended up chatting about ordinary things, like we had when we were younger and had spent more time together. I realized I missed this Jace; I missed this Jace a lot. So much so that all the memories I tried to suppress of him came rushing back, reminding me of how blind I really had been.

When we were 9, Isabelle and Jace had come over to my house for a sleepover, which had become routine in the few years we had known each other. That night, however, we had decided to stay up until dawn to watch the sunrise.

It hadn't worked.

Isabelle had dozed off first, falling asleep at the foot of my bed and releasing light snores. Jace had managed to last a bit longer, his eyes fluttering close just as the first splotches of light appeared in the sky.

By the time the sun had started peeping from the horizon, both Isabelle and Jace had been fast asleep. I was still wide awake however, and moved to rouse Jace from his sleep. Nine year old Isabelle had been just as scary to wake up when sleeping as she was now.

Jace had stirred, yet no amount of shaking had gotten him to come awake. So I had sat in between their sleeping forms and watched as the sun came up from my bedroom window.

Somewhere in the middle of that, my eyes had fallen onto Jace's sleeping form. Here the details were hazy; I couldn't remember if what I saw was a dream or reality. But what I did remember was the faint tug of wonder that brought me closer to him, the curiousity that brought my face close to his…

"There you go again Cherrydrop. Where were you wandering off to this time?"

I jumped when I saw that present Jace's face was almost just as close. "No-nothing," I sputtered, mentally hitting myself for remembering such things. It felt ten times worse now not knowing my own feelings when they were so obvious…

...when I was nine.

"Whatever you say." he shrugged. I relaxed a bit after he didn't push the topic.

Another name, however, surfaced in my mind. _Isabelle._

"Jace can I ask you a question?" I was anxious to know exactly what was going on with her.

Jace looked surprised at the sense of urgency in my voice. "Yeah?"

"Do you know what happened to Isabelle yesterday? I was telling her about-," I paused. I couldn't come out and say exactly what we had been discussing the day before, but Jace just gave a knowing grimace.

"Don't worry I know. Isabelle told me."

_Damn that girl for having such a big mouth._

He seemed reluctant to answer my question. I waited, looking at him purposely until he sighed and began to speak.

"Isabelle…likes Simon, Clary."

_Huh?_

"Uh, what?" Had I heard him right?

Jace shook his head and muttered something that sounded oddly like _blind idiot._ I would have been annoyed if I hadn't been so shocked at his previous statement.

"Yeah, Clary. That's why she was upset."

I wave of guilt washed over me. How could I have not known?

I felt like the world's shittiest friend. She knew every little detail about me, yet I had managed to be oblivious of her feelings. "I should I call her, I need to-," I scrambled off of the bed to grab at my phone, but Jace's hand had come up and held me back.

"You can do that later, Clary. She isn't that mad at you. She knew you were clueless with these sort of things to begin with."

I knew exactly how true that was. "Still…" as much as I wanted to rush over to Isabelle, Jace's voice was drawing me back towards where he was sitting.

"It's not every day you get this much of my amazingness. Enjoy it while it lasts."

I laughed at that. It seemed as if all of my stress and all of my tension over Simon was gone, even if for just a moment. I would not be able to find this comfort anywhere else.

* * *

Jace POV

We had spent the next couple hours sitting side by side against her headboard. It was refreshing to sit next to her and just talk like this; something I hadn't been able to do in a very long time.

Sometime after midnight, Clary had dozed off. Her head was now resting gently on my shoulder, her red curls splayed so that only a portion of her lightly freckled face was visible.

She looked so defenseless in her sleep, so breakable. I felt my protective streak flare up at the sight of her pale sleeping face that practically screamed innocence.

I reached out a hand to brush away her curls, surprised to see that it was shaking.

I sighed, bringing the hand back down after clearing the curls from her face. We were much too close

This was definitely crossing boundaries.

* * *

**:D**

**Happiness.**

**I don't know when I'm going to update next because I have a few things I have to do before school starts again. But maybe if there are tons of reviews, I'll feel like writing quicker ;)**

**Review because I updated really really quickly and because this chapter was all fuzzy c:**

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**~A.W.W**


	11. Chapter 11

**Hi again guys!**

**Sorry it's been a bit of a while, but school just started again and I've found myself ridiculously busy. With that being said, updates might be at this pace for a while, at least until the new year.**

**But the last chapter is still giving me tingles o.o -happy sigh-**

**Anyways, things get interesting again ;)**

**So on we go!**

* * *

I gave it a day before I spoke to Isabelle again, partly because I didn't know what to say to her after disregarding (albeit accidentally) her feelings for Simon, but mostly because I was wary that she might claw me.

I bit my cheek as I walked into first period, fumbling distractedly with the necklace that once again hung on my neck. Isabelle was sitting in her usual seat behind me and writing something in her planner, her long hair swung over her shoulder and head resting in her hand.

She looked up on hearing me approach and smiled surprisingly brightly in my direction. "Hi, Clary. I see you're feeling better," she observed, not a hint of a bitter or unusual tone to her voice. She gestured to my necklace and I chuckled nervously.

"Yeah I'm doing better, thanks," I paused, fishing for words that might somehow fix this situation. "Listen, Isabelle, I'm sorry," I started to say. Then I stopped, watching her face. The surprised expression on it told me that Jace hadn't told her that I knew about her secret crush.

"For what, exactly?" Isabelle asked, raising an eyebrow.

I sat down in my seat and turned around so I could lean towards her, not wanting the rest of the class to hear the conversation. "For not realizing you liked Simon," I finished, figuring it was better to just get everything in the open.

Her eyes widened in understanding but then quickly narrowed. Isabelle set her pen down against her planner. "You'd think you'd have better things than me to talk about when Jace comes to meet you late at night," she remarked pointedly.

"You tell him and Simon everything about me too, you have no right to talk," I said and stuck my tongue out at her, although her words_had_made that dumb blush rise to my face.

She scowled back, but I knew that she had forgiven my lack of insight as to her feelings for Simon. She _had _hidden them very well, in my opinion, so it wasn't totally my fault that I hadn't picked up on them. I smiled to myself as I turned to face the front of the classroom.

Maybe everything wasn't going to turn out as badly as I had thought.

* * *

The day passed considerably quicker now that most of the weight of my issue about Isabelle had been lifted off my shoulders. But now there was another problem that I had to face: Simon.

In my hurry to see him, I had arrived for lunch much earlier than usual. It was pretty obvious that he was ignoring my texts and calls, especially since it usually took him no more than five minutes to reply to a message. Thankfully, Simon would be forced to face me at lunch today. I gathered my courage as I walked towards the double doors leading into the cafeteria.

A hand on my arm stopped me just as I reached the doors. I turned, my first thoughts turning to Jace or Isabelle.

It was neither. Surprisingly, it was Sebastian Verlac who had caught my arm. He smiled and jerked his head towards the side of the hall before heading that way. I followed him a little off to the side of the doors, simply just to see what he had to say. All I knew about Sebastian was that his parents were obscenely rich; perhaps even more so than the Lightwoods. The only other thing I knew was that he was one of Jace's friends. Other than that, we had pretty much ignored each other for all of high school.

My curiosity rose. "What is it, Sebastian?"

His smile quirked at the sound of his name, drawing my attention to the confident curve of his lips. It was a very charming smile. "Nothing really, I just wanted to say hi," Sebastian replied. He continued to smile at me, casually sticking his hands into his pockets.

I raised my eyebrows as I waited for him to say something else. Looking at him closer though, a surprising thought struck me.

_He's handsome._

I pushed the idea aside as he spoke up once again. "I'm sorry we haven't talked much Clary. I think I'd like to get to know you," he offered, sounding completely sincere.

By this point, I honestly had no clue where he was going with this. I couldn't think of any motive he might have to get to know _me _of all people. Maybe he was just being genuinely friendly. "Sure, Sebastian," I agreed slowly, trying not to let my surprise show too much.

"I'm glad," he said warmly, flashing another attractive smile. I smiled back, trying to appear remotely normal. "So, I noticed something was up between you and Jace." _Of course he would bring it up, "_Anything the matter?"

Annoyance prickled somewhere in my head. As cute as Sebastian was, I didn't need anyone else prying into the affairs of my confused heart. "Nah, it's all good now.  
I informed him, trying not to sound rude but still dismiss the question. "Thanks though."

I made a move to go back toward the cafeteria, but he put a hand out to stop me. He didn't look too convinced with my answer.

"Okay, but I just want you to know that I'm here for you if you'd like to talk about anything concerning him. I'm probably one of Jace's closest friends." Sebastian threw another gorgeous smile in my direction, yet I couldn't help but wonder how genuine his words were. One of Jace's closest friends, hmm? I couldn't recall Jace talking much about him ever, and he had certainly not made a point of hanging out with him often enough to warrant close friendship.

"I'll keep that in mind," I said sweetly, and pushed past him into the cafeteria.

_Well, that was weird._

My confusion with Sebastian, however, was immediately forgotten when I spotted Simon sitting at the table next to Alec. It seemed that everyone else still hadn't made it. _Perfect._

I practically ran to take the seat next to Simon, smiling brightly in response to his surprised face. Alec seemed to be studiously ignoring us, as if he knew all about the tension between Simon and me.

Then again, knowing the gossipy habits of our friends, he probably did.

Once I had settled into the chair, Simon angled himself away from me like a little kid avoiding eating his vegetables. I scoffed and leaned forward on my folded arms so that my face was in his line of vision. I waved in his face, but he kept his gaze fixated on a spot on the opposite wall.

It wasn't until Jace appeared carrying his lunch to the table that Simon made any sort of noticeable reaction. As Jace sat down, Simon nodded his head and said "Hey," to which Jace responded with a nod and "hey," of his own.

Looking between the two, I made a comment that wasn't entirely aimed at anybody, "What's with the 'hey' thing?" I mused, partly to make conversation and partly because I was actually wondering.

Simon raised an eyebrow, "What 'hey' thing?"

I was thrilled that he had made a normal response, but I tried to hide my glee, gesturing toward Jace and back to Simon. "You know, the 'hey' thing guys do. Like when you saw Jace you said 'hey' and he said 'hey' back," I explained. "What's wrong with hello?"

Simon sighed. "'Hello' is too girly," he said, his tone making it seem as if it should be obvious. "Real men are terse. Laconic."

I was far too excited that he was taking part in a conversation with me. "So the less you say, the manlier you are?" I clarified.

Simon nodded. "Exactly. That's why when badasses great each other in movies, they just nod. The nod means, 'I am a badass, and I recognize that you, too, are a badass,' but they don't say anything because they're Wolverine and Magneto and it would mess up their vibe to explain."

"You realize no one else but you two reads comics right? We have no idea what you're talking about." Jace looked between me and Simon with an unreadable expression.

"Good." I responded and smiled at Simon. A small smile found its way to his face and my spirits were automatically lifted. Maybe things in between our friendship weren't so hopeless after all.

"I'm glad to see that everyone's smiling."

We turned towards Isabelle as she came to take her seat next to me. I was worried for a second that she would be upset at seeing me and Simon together, but she nudged me with her shoulder to express her approval and smiled.

"Hate to interrupt the sunshine and puppies, but is there any reason for Sebastian to have his eyes locked on you, Clary?" Jace said, though something in his tone a little off. His gaze was still on his food, so I turned around in confusion towards where Sebastian usually sat.

Jace was right; Sebastian _had _been looking at me. When he saw me looking back, he gave a little wave, sending yet another brilliant smile. I waved back in slight disbelief and turned back toward Jace.

"I'm not sure?" I said, unable to make it sound like it wasn't a question. "He did try to initiate conversation with me today though," I remarked. "It was kinda weird."

"Oh?" Jace's eyebrows rose in faint surprise. "And what was it that he said?"

The blush that followed my memory of the conversation made Jace's eyes narrow suspiciously. I fumbled for an answer before he could assume anything. "Nothing really, he just said he wanted to get to know me," I assured him.

Simon snorted. "Yeah, get to know your-,"

Isabelle interrupted before he could finish sharing his no doubt lovely idea. "Be careful of him, Clary," she warned me seriously. "The Verlacs are family friends so I've known him for a while, and I'm not entirely sure how much I trust Sebastian. Or any of Jace's friends for that matter."

"Touché," Jace muttered.

I rolled my eyes but gave her a reassuring smile nonetheless. "Don't worry Isabelle, I'll be fine."

"Okay, Clary," she said, but doubt still clouded her expression.

I wasn't sure what she was worried about; as handsome as Sebastian Verlac was, he was definitely not my type. It wasn't like I was going to be falling for any guy anytime soon, either. I had kinda just realized that I was in love with a certain somebody, which wasn't exactly something I felt I would get over quickly.

* * *

When I got home, my mother was nowhere to be found. The door to her studio stood ajar, the room empty and quiet.

I shrugged any worry aside; chances were that she was taking a nap or had gone out for some groceries. I set my backpack on the kitchen table as I always did and perused the cabinets for a quick snack.

Once I had settled with some brownies and a glass of milk, a stack of mail caught my attention. That was unusual; my mother usually kept the mail in her office after she finished reading it.

The envelope on top was the only one that had been opened; curiosity brought my hand forward and picked the envelope off of the pile.

The mail had been addressed to _the wife of Valentine Morgenstern._

I gasped in surprise at my father's name. When I was young, my mother had forbidden me from speaking of my father and never even mentioned his name. One rainy afternoon, however, I had come across a collection of letters addressed from a man with the name Valentine Morgenstern to my mother while exploring a box in her closet. When she had found me sprawled on the floor with the letters, she had snatched them out of my hand and scolded me for going through her things. Yet, after my relentless questioning, she had finally conceded that the man had indeed been my father.

But what could this new letter have been about?

Just as my shaking hands had begun to pull the contents out of the envelope, my mother had come barging into the kitchen.

"Clary!" she exclaimed when she saw what I had in my hand. Without another word, she hastily took the letter from me.

"Mom, what-," I stared at her angry face in shock; why was she so vehemently against anything related to my father, someone who I knew nothing about?

"Clary, go to your room." She pointed her finger towards the stairs, and I saw that her hands were shaking, her finger quivering in the air.

"Mom, but why-"

"I said your room, Clary." She had closed her eyes and my body unconsciously responded. I picked up my backpack and left the kitchen, still in surprise.

As I got to my room, anger had slowly replaced the surprise. I tossed my backpack onto my bed and paced the room. I had never been sent to my room, even when I was a little kid. Nor had I seen her that angry before…

But she had no right to keep things about my father from me, or to respond in such a way. I just didn't get it.

What could she possibly have to hide about my father?

* * *

**Sooo.**

**Thoughts on Sebastian/Clary's dad?**

**I'll love to know what you think :D**

**Thanks for all the love, and don't forget to drop a review!**

**Yours,**

**~A.W.W**


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